Norway Urges Its Citizens to Avoid Travel to Whole Sweden Now

Authorities in Norway have advised its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Sweden’s region of the Kalmar, after estimating that there has been an increase in the number of the Coronavirus pandemic in this zone, Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced.

According to the ministry’s statements the Kalmar region will go from yellow to red on Europe’s infection map, which makes the whole Sweden’s territory to go red, due to the current COVID-19 situation in the latter, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

Since October 24, all persons seeking to enter Norway from Kalmar must first comply with ten days mandatory quarantine rules imposed by local authorities.

“Based on the National Institute of Public Health’s weekly assessment of the infection situation for the coronavirus, the government has decided that the Kalmar region in Sweden will go from yellow to red on the infection map for Europe, which means that the whole of Sweden will be red,” the statement reads.

Authorities in Norway do not consider safe either, the following countries, (including Sweden), in which they continue to urge to avoid non-essential travel to: Belgium, Andorra, Bulgaria, France, Estonia, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, Latvia, Lithuania, Monaco, Malta, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

According to Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, travel to the following countries should also be avoided, unless it’s necessary: Portugal, Poland, San Marino, Romania, Slovakia, UK, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Vatican City State, Hungary, Austria and some parts of Finland and Denmark.

Up to this point, a total of 17,909 persons tested positive for the Coronavirus pandemic, in Norway, while 279 persons have died.

From the deadly virus, more than 11,800 persons have recovered while currently, the country is facing 5,767 active COVID-19 cases.

Earlier this month Norway’s government announced that family members of Norwegians, as well as the country’s residents, will be eligible to join them for Christmas time, despite the fact that they could be residents of third countries under the European Union entry ban.

Such a decision came after management in Norway announced that more family members from third countries would be permitted to meet with their relatives in Norway, as part of efforts to allow more persons enter the country, after excluding them from the entry ban.

The country also announced that students, as well as commuters of Finland and Sweden, will not be required to follow quarantine rules anymore after Norway’s administration decided to change quarantine rules for students and pupils of these two territories. The decision was revealed by Norway’s Ministry of Education through a statement.

According to Norway’s Minister of Research and Higher Education Henrik Asheim, the government modified its regulation in order to help students and pupils feel that they are being treated equally with other workers who commute across the border.