Press Advisories

28. 2. 2020 16:36

National Security Council does not recommend travelling to Lombardy or Veneto

On the evening of Tuesday, 25 February 2020, the expanded presidium of the National Security Council held a special meeting at Straka Academy. The meeting was convened by PM Andrej Babiš over the current situation with the spread of coronavirus. The presidium subsequently issued a recommendation that Czechs avoid travelling to the highest risk regions in northern Italy, Lombardy and Veneto.

The members of the National Security Council presidium agreed that although no positive case of Covid-19 has been reported in the Czech Republic, Czech citizens should be cautious due to the spread of coronavirus in Europe, particularly when travelling abroad.

"We assessed the overall situation. Naturally we are aware that following China and South Korea we have a centre of contagion in Italy as well, in the regions of Lombardy and Veneto, from which the disease has also spread to Austria and other European countries," stated PM Andrej Babiš.

According to the presidium of the National Security Council, under the current situation Czech citizens should consider the risks associated with travelling abroad. The fact is that if they come into contact with an incidence of the disease, they could encounter the situation experienced by Czech tourists in the Canary Islands, where they ended up involuntarily quarantined by decision of the local authorities.

"We truly do not recommend that our citizens travel to Lombardy or Veneto right now and we call upon our citizens who are returning from this area and notice any symptoms to contact a physician without delay, preferably by telephone. And of course the minister of health and the chief medical officer have received clear tasks and we are, I think, prepared," the prime minister said.

The National Security Council presidium, with the governor of the Vysočina Region Jiří Běhounek in attendance, also assessed the potential risks associated with organising the Biathlon World Cup on 5 to 8 March in Nové Město na Moravě. The conclusion was come to that under the current situation it is not necessary to adopt any extraordinary measures in association with the expected large number of biathlon fans from many countries of Europe and the world.