EU summit welcomes Covid certificate to unlock travel

EUleaders on Tuesday welcomed the introduction of a bloc-wideCOVID-19 pass that they hope willunlocka tourist surge this summer.

The 27 member states want theEUDigitalCovidCertificate, to be launched July 1, to turn the page on coronavirus restrictions that have crimped Europeans' cherished freedom of movement.

Also Read |Vaccine Passport: The European Covid certificate, a user's guide

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Coupled with a separate plan to let in fully vaccinated travellers from countries outside theEU, to be defined by the middle of June, Europe believes its vital tourist industry could claw back some of the losses racked up since the start of the pandemic.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen told a media conference after thesummitthat more than 300 millionCOVID-19 vaccine doses will have been delivered by the end of this week, rising to 400 million next month.

Also Read |EU lines up Covid travel pass, Eiffel Tower to reopen

"If we continue like this, we have confidence that we will be able to safely reopen our societies," she said, adding theEUwas on track to meet its goal of fully inoculating 70 per cent of adults by late July.

"Progressively, we should return to the ability to move freely throughout the European Union," European Council President Charles Michel said.

Also Read |Coming soon: The ‘Vaccine Passport’

EUcountries and the European Parliament struck an agreement last week on the legislation to come into force in mid-June for theCovidcertificate. Von der Leyen said all the technological infrastructure would be ready by June 1.

The leaders of Greece, Spain and Croatia, whose economies strongly rely on tourist spending, were particularly effusive about the common document.

Also Read |European Union mulls 'vaccination passports' to bring back tourists

They all had wipe-out summer seasons last year, but are already starting to welcome back foreign travellers, ignoring Brussels' plea to coordinate at anEUlevel.

QR code verification

Luxembourg's prime minister, Xavier Bettel, pointed out that a scannable QR code on the certificates will stymie the "hugely copied" PDF files of test results or vaccinations that some people were using to cross borders.

TheEU'sCovidcertificatewill show the bearer's vaccination status, or whether they have immunity from aCovidinfection they have recovered from or the result of aCovidtest.

Also Read |EU plans to open up countries to more foreign tourists this summer

Conscious that theEUhas procured up to 4.4 billion vaccine doses over the next two years, far more than it needs for its population of 450 million, leaders have rallied to a pledge made at aG20summitin Rome last Friday to share 100 million doses to countries in need by the end of this year.

Denmark and Sweden each promised three million doses from their stocks at thesummit. Germany, Italy and France had already pledged higher amounts.

Also Read |EU set to let vaccinated US tourists visit this summer

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she also pushed leaders to agree to a mechanism to "react quickly and cohesively" if worrying new coronavirus variants popped up.

The Brussels gathering ofEUleaders on Tuesday also looked at ways to share out the burden on battling climate change, to meet the target of cutting emissions by 55 per cent over the rest of this decade.

Von der Leyen's commission has been tasked with mapping out the next steps, including potentially unpopular ones such as slapping carbon taxes on cars and buildings.

Also Read |Belarus faces new sanctions from West over forced landing of plane, arrest of journalist

The first day of thesummiton Monday was overshadowed by Belarus, which sits just outside theEU's eastern borders, forcing down a Ryanair passenger plane the day before to arrest an opposition journalist and his companion who were on board.

Also Watch |EU leaders call for sanctions against Belarus over Ryanair plane 'hijacking', arrest of journalist

EUleaders unanimously blasted the action and moved to cut Belarus out of European airspace as part of a package of sanctions that will be developed further.