Europe

Dutch newspaper drew the middle finger on the Hungarian and Polish flags

On Monday, the Dutch daily business news outlet, Het Financieele Dagblad, published an opinion article on the EU’s financial package, which was negotiated this summer and is still awaiting implementation. According to the author of the Dutch article, Poland and Hungary are threatening to veto the nearly €2,000 billion package because they do not want the rule of law as “they have been violating it for years”.

Magyar Nemzet says that depressing opinions and articles in the Dutch press about Hungary are nothing new, but this time Het Financieele Dagblad might have gone one step over the line. They attached a caricature to their article in which

they depicted the flags of the members of the EU, but with a middle finger on both Hungary’s and Poland’s national flag.

András Kocsis, Hungary’s Ambassador to the Hague, wrote to the editorial office of the newspaper in order to respond to the accusations in the article against Hungary, but the paper refused to publish the ambassador’s response.

The Embassy of Hungary to the Hague, therefore, published the ambassador’s response article. Kocsis writes: “The simplification of the European debate to middle fingers depicted on national flags, such as the illustration” in the “opinion article of 19 October, shows […] a complete lack of understanding” of the situation.

In his article, András Kocsis points out that the source of the conflict between Hungary and other European countries is not truly the rule of law but rather an ideological conflict between liberal and Christian democracy. As he puts it, the Hungarian government is firmly favouring national sovereignty and focuses on the family.

The ambassador also responded to the article on his Twitter account:

https://twitter.com/Amb_Kocsis/status/1319339612066762753

Read alsoHungary, Poland ‘won’t be blackmailed’ over EU funds, says FM

Read alsoPM Viktor Orbán on Trump’s “criminal record”

October 25, 2020

France becomes 2nd worst hit EU country, record daily caseloads haunting Europe

With a record 42,032 new infections confirmed in the last 24 hours, France has counted an accumulative total of 1,041,075 COVID-19 cases as of Friday, becoming the second European Union (EU) country passing the grim one-million mark after Spain.

SPIRALING TREND

Data showed that the spread of coronavirus is on a spiraling trend in Europe. Record daily caseloads are being refreshed more frequently in many European countries amid the second wave of the COVID-19.

On Friday, a slew of European countries reported record new cases, including Poland (13,632), the Netherlands (10,007), Romania (5,028), Portugal (3,270), Hungary (2,066), Denmark (859), and Latvia (250). Some of them — France and Denmark, for instance — even hit new highs in two consecutive days.

As of 3:34 p.m. CEST on Friday, two EU countries, namely Spain and France, were among the top 10 countries globally with the most confirmed cases on the dashboard of the World Health Organization (WHO). The United Kingdom ranked the 11th with 810,471 confirmed cases.

While these major European countries grabbed the world’s attention with their caseloads, some of their small peers are more worrisome in terms of the incidence rate.

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), as of Friday, the Czech Republic and Belgium were the only two countries among the EU/EEA and the UK with the 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 above 1,000. The Czech Republic (1148.5) and Belgium (1019.8) are far higher than Spain (379.1) and France (488.6).

ECDC has developed epidemiological criteria to categorize the epidemiological situation in countries as being “of concern” or “of serious concern.” Countries whose epidemiological situation does not meet the criteria for being either of them are categorized as having a “stable” situation.

As of Friday, only six European countries, namely Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Liechtenstein and Norway, were categorized as “stable.” Still,the agency warned of ongoing transmission among them, saying the situation must be closely monitored.

FINE-TUNED MEASURES

Despite the drastic resurgence of the pandemic across Europe, most countries on the continent resorted to varied, fine-tuned and targeted measures rather than a general lockdown adopted in the first wave to try to contain the spread of the virus.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Friday said all steps should be taken to avert a second national lockdown, as a recent spike in new coronavirus cases boosted fears across the country.

In a video speech delivered at Work Festival 2020, Conte said the goal was to “contain the infection, and avoid a halt of production and working activities, as well as the closure of schools and public offices.”

“We must avert a second generalized lockdown, and in order to do so we must be vigilant and ready to intervene any time, wherever is necessary,” said the Italian PM.

Italy has so far reacted by implementing increasingly restrictive provisions, including a ban on private parties.

While general lockdown is shunned by most European countries, curfew has become a major option for many of them to deal with the second wave. Several hardest-hit European countries, including Spain, France, Germany and Belgium, have brought in curfews at least on parts of their territories.

Some countries even opted for partial lockdowns. The Dutch government announced last week a “partial lockdown” to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country.

More countries are fine-tuning their restrictive measures, including extending the mandatory scope of mask-wearing and narrowing the social bubbles.

LIVE WITH CORONAVIRUS

With the anti-virus measures, Europeans are learning how to live with the virus, at least for now.

Based on the scientists’ projections, French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters on Friday during a visit to a hospital in Pontoise, northwest Paris that French people have to live with the COVID-19 at least until next summer.

“The question is how to live with the virus during this time? In the phase we are in, we have no other choice… That is to say to reduce our social life to the maximum, limit contacts and break its circulation,” he said.

Ensuring hospitals not overwhelmed under the impact of the second wave has become a priority of many European governments.

Germany currently has a capacity of just under 30,000 intensive care beds, of which 21,473 or 72 percent were already in use as of Thursday, according to the Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (DIVI) online registry for intensive care beds.

The Latvian medics also worried that the health system might become overloaded at one point, with COVID-19 patients quickly filling hospital beds.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference on Friday that “Too many countries are seeing an exponential increase in cases and that is now leading to hospitals and ICU running close or above capacity and we’re still only in October.”

As the world is struggling to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, countries including Germany, France, Italy, China, Russia, Britain and the United States are racing to find a vaccine.

According to the website of the WHO, as of Oct. 19, there were 198 COVID-19 candidate vaccines being developed worldwide, and 44 of them were in clinical trials.

Read alsoEuropean countries set record COVID-19 daily numbers as Spain’s total cases top 1 million

October 24, 2020

Facebook Dating becomes available in Europe for the first time

In Europe, Facebook Dating was not available, until now, when suddenly more and more countries report that the additional function of Facebook is available in their area, including Hungary.

WOW! Facebook’s “Supreme Court” was created, and one of its members is Hungarian!

HVG reported that after the USA and American countries, Facebook made its Dating site inside the main app available in European countries. Users need to create a different profile inside the Dating site that exists individually from their original Facebook site. It is not required to give your full name or occupation, and there is an opportunity to upload separate pictures, videos, or even Facebook stories.

Pictures related to nudity will be deleted immediately by the system.

The registration comes with filling out an online form to help users find people with the same interests. According to Facebook, Dating will not do the same as Tinder to get people together who already know each other. This can be blocked on the level of the dating algorithm, but if someone meets an acquaintance inside Dating, there is a Secret Crush option to signal our interest, but the other user needs to validate this option.

Facebook Dating also allows people to chat with each other immediately, while in Tinder you need to match first.

If someone is not interested in the other one, a blocking function is also available along with starting a video chat. The app is becoming available in every European country day by day, including Hungary, available on Android and iOS alike.

Read alsoFacebook shot down Hungarian anti-coronavirus groups

October 23, 2020

European countries set record COVID-19 daily numbers as Spain’s total cases top 1 million

Countries in Europe saw their daily coronavirus infection numbers set new records yet again on Wednesday as Spain’s total cases reached 1,005,295, becoming the first country in the European Union (EU) whose COVID-19 cases have topped one million.

In the past weeks, daily records of COVID-19 cases in many European countries have been smashed repeatedly as the continent took the brunt of surges in the second wave of the pandemic.

Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga said late Tuesday that she tested positive for COVID-19. On Wednesday, German Health Minister Jens Spahn was reported to have tested positive.

Britain, Poland, the Netherlands, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia and Lithuania all reported on Wednesday their new records of daily cases since the novel coronavirus outbreak, while Germany has registered more than 50 coronavirus infections per 100,000 inhabitants over a one-week period, the first time the country has breached its own critical limit for tackling the pandemic.

RECORDS SHATTERED

UK reported 26,688 daily coronavirus cases on Wednesday, its highest ever, taking the country’s total cases to 789,229. Meanwhile, coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 191 to 44,158, according to official figures.

England’s South Yorkshire, where the case rates of COVID-19 infections are among the highest in the country, from 285 to 402 people per 100,000 inhabitants, will move its local COVID-19 alert level to the top restriction level from Saturday, the British Department of Health and Social Care announced Wednesday.

Poland’s daily number of confirmed coronavirus cases broke the 10,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday, standing at 10,040, with 130 deaths. The tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country has risen to 202,579, while 3,851 people have died since the start of the pandemic.

COVID-19 infections in the Netherlands kept climbing and reached a new daily record of 8,764 cases in a 24-hour span, bringing the country’s total to 253,134, official data showed on Wednesday. Fifty-nine patients had died in the 24 hours, taking the country’s toll to 6,873.

Another 105 COVID-19 patients were admitted to hospital for treatment in the 24 hours, raising the number of COVID-19 patients currently in hospital to 2,013. Of those hospitalized, 465 patients were in intensive care.

Austria reported its biggest daily increase of COVID-19 cases as a further 1,958 people tested positive in the past 24 hours. There are currently 960 people in hospital for coronavirus treatment, 147 of them in intensive care units.

Croatia and Slovenia also reported their new high of 1,424 and 1,504 new cases respectively in the past 24 hours.

“The virus is spreading dynamically throughout Europe,” the Hungarian government’s coronavirus information website stated while releasing the new figure of 1,423 COVID-19 cases in a 24-hour span, adding that the goal of the Hungarian government was to keep the country functioning and not let the virus paralyze everyday life.

MORE RESTRICTIONS

The Lithuanian government decided on Wednesday to put 12 municipalities under a two-week lockdown as of Oct. 26 due to COVID-19 spikes. Lithuania reported 311 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, the biggest daily spike since the country confirmed its first case on Feb. 28

The Czech government on Wednesday decided to close most shops and services in the country and strictly restrict the movement of residents as of Thursday to curb one of the world’s fastest growing COVID-19 infection rates. On Tuesday, the country reported 11,984 new COVID-19 cases, the highest daily number since the pandemic outbreak.

As part of the new measures, which will remain in force until Nov. 3, gatherings of more than two people who are not in the same household or work together will be banned.

The measures — which resemble those in force during the first lockdown this spring — allow people to visit shops to buy essential items, make necessary family visits and travel to parks and the countryside.

To curb the spread of coronavirus and prevent a second lockdown, the Austrian government introduced tightened measures including a limit on indoor gatherings to six people and allowing states to impose regional restrictions such as curfews. These measures will come into effect from Friday and apply for at least four weeks.

In Belgium, where an average of 8,975 new cases per day were reported from Oct. 11 to Oct. 17, a new testing strategy came into effect on Wednesday. People with COVID-19 symptoms will be tested more to allow the testing to be more precise in order to break the chains of coronavirus transmission. The strategy applies to people returning from the red zones abroad. Those at low risk or who are asymptomatic will be tested less, according to spokesman Yves Van Laethem.

To ease the burden on its health system, the Polish government is building a temporary hospital containing 500 beds, with a possible expansion to 1,000, in the National Stadium. Poland is also making efforts to contain the pandemic. One candidate medicine, developed from blood plasma of recovered patients, is now undergoing testing in the eastern Polish town of Lublin.

As the world is caught in the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, countries including France, Italy, China, Russia, Britain and the United States are racing to find a vaccine. According to the website of the World Health Organization, as of Oct. 19, there were 198 COVID-19 candidate vaccines being developed worldwide, and 44 of them were in clinical trials.

Read alsoCzech Republic closes shops, curbs movement as COVID-19 cases spike

October 22, 2020

Countries in Europe scrambling for hospital beds as 2nd wave of COVID-19 rolls in

Setting up field hospitals, installing ICU beds, even purchasing more beds, countries in Europe are scrambling for hospital beds as the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic rolls in with vengeance.

SURGING INFECTIONS

On Thursday, the Netherlands reported 7,833 new single-day cases of COVID-19, a new high over the 7,296 cases confirmed in the previous 24 hours.

In neighboring Belgium, authorities confirmed a daily average of 5,421 new coronavirus cases in the last seven days (Oct. 5 to Oct. 11), a 101-percent increase from the previous week.

On Wednesday, 1,777 hospital beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients, compared to 1,050 on Oct. 7 — an increase of 69 percent.

In Italy, an epicenter in Europe during the first wave of the coronavirus epidemic, saw a new record of 8,804 daily infections on Thursday, up from 7,332 the previous day. Both grim figures overtook the previous high of 6,554 recorded on March 21, sparking fears that the second wave of the global outbreak would surpass the darkest days of the first, at least in terms of the infection rate.

France, one of the “big five” hit hardest in Europe during the first wave, reported on Thursday its biggest daily infections with coronavirus, as 30,621 people have tested positive in the past 24 hours.

Even Ireland witnessed late Wednesday 1,095 confirmed new cases, its highest ever recorded in a single day since the outbreak of the pandemic.

At a virtual press conference on Thursday, WHO (World Health Organization) Regional Director for Europe Dr. Hans Kluge confirmed that the number of cases in Europe had surpassed seven million, with almost 700,000 new infections reported in the past week alone — the highest weekly incidence of COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic.

“The number of positive cases rose from six to seven million in just 10 days and over the weekend new records were reached with daily totals surpassing 120,000 cases for the first time,” he said.

Presenting troubling figures on the evolving epidemiological situation in Europe, Kluge said COVID-19 is now the “fifth leading cause of deaths and the bar of 1,000 deaths per day has now been reached.”

MORE BEDS NEEDED

The soaring infections have caught some countries unawares.

The Czech Republic, which reported on Wednesday 9,544 new COVID-19 cases, its biggest daily count ever and one of the highest COVID-19 spikes in Europe, will start putting together emergency field hospitals for COVID-19 patients.

Prime Minister Andrej Babis said the state would purchase 3,000 regular hospital beds and another 1,000 critical care beds from nursing bed maker LINET.

“We don’t have time, the outlook is not good. These numbers are catastrophic,” Babis said.

Biochemist Jan Konvalinka warned that people who catch the virus this week may not find a hospital bed should they need it and that existing models put the country’s hospitals at full capacity by the end of October.

In Romania, where 4,013 new cases were confirmed on Thursday, Health Minister Nelu Tataru said all hospitals across the country must reserve 10 percent of intensive care units and 15 percent of beds from general wards for COVID-19 patients.

Until now, COVID-19 patients in the country have only been treated in designated hospitals, which have been almost overwhelmed, especially in areas with severe outbreaks. The situation in intensive care units (ICUs) is even more serious, as the number of critically-ill patients hit new high of 721 on Thursday.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Thursday that 46 percent of ICUs in Paris are occupied by COVID-19 patients, as the country is struggling to contain a worrying resurgence of the coronavirus.

The number of people in hospital for the COVID-19 surged by 411 to 9,605, including 1,750 in intensive care units.

“Earlier, the right answer would have been installing additional resuscitation beds, but that is no more the case. No system would be able to meet the needs of such an epidemic if we did not do anything upstream. (…) It is necessary to train personnel, but that is impossible to do in a few months. The only solution is to put a brake (on the spread of virus),” he said.

CURFEWS AND PARTIAL LOCKDOWNS

French President Emmanuel Macron has declared curfews between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. in the Greater Paris region and eight major cities starting from midnight Friday and will remain in force at least for four weeks.

In Spain, the Catalan government in the northeastern region has decided to close all bars and restaurants for 15 days starting Friday, after the regional health department recorded on Wednesday an incidence of 290 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest level since April.

This is the first time one of Spain’s 17 autonomous communities has decided to take such an action since the central government ended the nationwide State of Alarm in June.

Meanwhile, seven of Slovenia’s 12 statistical regions will be all but locked down as of Friday in a bid to contain the exponential growth in coronavirus cases.

People from the seven red-coded regions, where the 14-day rolling average has exceeded 140 per 100,000 residents, will be banned from travelling to other regions, except for commuting to work. Face masks will also be mandatory outdoors in red regions, except for children up to the age of six and primary school pupils up to year five.

Citing projections provided by epidemiological models, WHO Regional Director for Europe Kluge said simple measures — such as mask wearing at a rate of 95 percent from now, instead of the less than 60 percent today, together with the strict control of social gatherings — may save up to 281,000 lives by Feb. 1 across WHO Europe’s 53 member states.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreaks in early 2020, wearing masks in public has been widely accepted in Asian countries like China, South Korea, and Japan to limit the spread of COVID-19.

“These projections do nothing but confirm what we have always said: the pandemic won’t reverse its course on its own. We will.”

October 16, 2020

France to impose curfew as Europe tightens curbs to fight COVID-19 resurgence

France, Portugal and Romania became the latest European countries — after the Netherlands and Italy — to impose tougher restrictions on Wednesday as a coronavirus resurgence continues to sweep across the continent.

France will introduce a night-time curfew in major cities and re-impose a state of health emergency. Portugal returns to a “state of calamity”. Romania extends a state of alert for the fifth time. In addition, Northern Ireland of the United Kingdom sets out a range of restrictive measures.

Many European governments now have the same goal — stemming the spread of COVID-19 while avoiding a national lockdown like the one in the spring, which is economically costly.

RE-IMPOSING EMERGENCY

In a drastic move on Wednesday evening, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a night-time curfew in Paris and eight other big cities — starting from Friday midnight and lasting for a duration of at least four weeks — except for essential reasons.

“We have now entered a phase to which we must react…The virus is everywhere in France,” Macron said in a televised interview. France has been in a second wave of the coronavirus epidemic with an average of 20,000 new infection cases per day.

The situation is worrying and the curfew is a “pertinent” measure while having the whole country locked down again, like the two-month measure earlier this year, would be “disproportionate”, Macron explained.

Earlier on Wednesday, the French government adopted a decree, which will re-impose a state of health emergency in the country starting from Friday midnight, BFMTV news channel reported.

France was in a state of health emergency from March 23 to July 9 this year during the first wave of the pandemic.

Also on Wednesday, Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced to re-impose a “state of calamity” — one of the country’s three emergency levels — due to the “serious evolution” of the pandemic.

The decision was taken at the Council of Ministers’ meeting, which also adopted additional anti-virus measures. The new measures will enter into force on Thursday.

The new rules limit gatherings in public spaces to five people. Private family events, such as weddings and baptisms, can be attended by a maximum of 50 people, and “all celebrations, receptions and non-academic activities” are prohibited in schools in Portugal.

The Romanian government decided late Wednesday to further extend the state of alert for another 30 days starting Thursday, announced Raed Arafat, head of the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU).

This is the fifth extension of the state of alert, which was first announced in mid-May following a two-month higher-level state of emergency.

According to Arafat, one of the most important provisions approved by the government relates to the mandatory wearing of face masks in all public spaces in localities where the coefficient of reported infections over 14 days per 1,000 residents exceeds the threshold of three.

Face masks should be used as part of a comprehensive strategy of measures to suppress COVID-19 transmission and save lives, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreaks in early 2020, wearing masks in public has been widely accepted in Asian countries like China, South Korea, and Japan to limit the spread of COVID-19.

MOUNTING HUMAN COST

The human cost of coronavirus has continued to mount in Europe. Romania, Portugal, Croatia, Austria, and Slovenia all registered the highest daily infection cases on Wednesday.

Romania reported 4,016 new COVID-19 cases in a 24-hour span, the biggest daily jump since the pandemic began, bringing the cumulative number of confirmed cases to 164,477.

A further 66 patients died from COVID-19 in 24 hours, bringing the death toll in the country to 5,601. Another worrying data officially announced was that the number of critically-ill patients exceeded 600 for nine consecutive days, reaching a record of 686 on Wednesday.

In Spain, the country hardest-hit in Europe, the Health Ministry on Wednesday reported 11,970 new coronavirus cases, bringing the country’s total number of infections to 908,056.

It also confirmed 209 new deaths from the virus, taking the total number of victims of COVID-19 in Spain to 33,413. On Tuesday, the Health Ministry confirmed 80 deaths and 7,118 new cases.

France has registered 22,591 new cases of coronavirus infection in the last 24 hours, according to the Public Health Agency on Wednesday. It is the third time since last Friday that the daily new cases went above the 20,000 threshold.

The accumulative total of infections now stands at 779,063 and the death toll went up by 104 to reach 33,037. Currently 9,194 COVID-19 patients are in hospital, including 1,673 in intensive care, up by 245 and 31 respectively in one day.

In Britain, another 19,724 people have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 654,644, official data showed on Wednesday.

The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 137 to 43,155, the data showed.

Read alsoHungarian borders must open soon! EU member states adopt common color code

October 15, 2020

Why do these two Hungarian regions have so many Dutch expats?

The southern counties of Tolna and Baranya have a remarkable Dutch expat community, and as they say, low prices are not among the top reasons they had chosen Hungary as their new home.

Edit Horváthné Farkas is a real estate broker, mostly specialised in selling houses, both to foreigners and Hungarians, in the counties of Baranya and Tolna in southern Hungary. In an interview with Demokrata on Dutch people and other foreigners who have chosen to live in Hungary, she explains that

in the Netherlands, having even a small yard is a luxury, while in Hungary, they can easily afford a plot of thousands of square metres.

The interview also shares the story of a few Dutch expats who decided to leave their home country for good. Mostly what appeals to these people about Hungary is the beautiful landscape, peaceful life, public safety, and friendly Hungarians, “who are not as reserved as the Dutch”, and whom they feel they can always count on.

The power of community

A settlement with a remarkable expat community is Almamellék, a small town in Baranya County: here, over 30 houses are owned by foreigners today. The first house purchased by a Dutch was transformed into what is called Mambo Camping, and it has since attracted a large number of Dutch people.

According to the mayor, Erika Szilágyiné Kadiró, apart from the Netherlands, families have since moved here from Belgium, the United Kingdom, and Germany, too. She says that these people are mostly (but not only) pensioners. Some only spend a few months here, but it is very common that they “leave everything behind”.

Wil Casper and her husband moved to Almamellék three years ago, but they were regular visitors to Wil’s sister even before that. They especially like the people who surround them. “My neighbours bring me so many cookies I am not able to finish them,” says Wil. She especially likes mobile vendors as they remind her of her childhood.

Wil’s sister thinks that Hungarians have had a better quality of life since 2005, but luckily, “this has not changed their character: they still care for each other just as much.”

There are a couple of things they do not like about Hungarians, though. “Hungarians are always at leisure: they are often late and struggle to keep the deadlines.”

As for the reasons they left the Netherlands behind, many expats mention the growing presence of Muslim immigrants in their home country. Robert Deege, who moved here with his wife, brings the example of how several streets, bearing the name of significant historic figures, have been renamed if that person had connections to colonialism.

Finns in Hungary: pleasant climate and low prices

The counties of Tolna and Baranya are not the only ones with a significant expat community. As Demokrata writes, Akác-tanya southeast of Budapest, a farm run by a Finnish-Hungarian couple, has played an important role in attracting many Finns to Hungary, either for their vacation or to move here permanently.

A couple that belongs to the latter group is Kari Taivassalo and Marjukka, who first came here to pursue their hobby of horse riding, and in less than ten years, they ended up buying a house in a settlement nearby. What they really like about Hungary is the pleasant climate and the low prices. People are friendlier here, and “money is not in the centre of attention.”

What they have mixed feelings about is the healthcare system. At a hospital in Pest they had to visit multiple times, they always received very poor service, but when it comes to their general practitioner, they had nothing but good experiences – in Helsinki, they would have to wait months before their doctor sees them. They added that Hungarian people in general are very friendly and always ready to help out even if there is a language barrier.

budapest tourist tourism panorama unsplash

Read alsoChicken paprikash and easy-going people: a Korean student’s impressions of Hungary

October 14, 2020

Europe eyes stricter measures as countries set all-time daily records

From new alert system to local lockdown, European countries have been stepping up efforts to contain the resurgent wave of COVID-19 as they record the highest daily cases ever and the cumulative cases in the region exceed seven million.

As of Monday afternoon, Europe had registered 87,100 new COVID-19 cases in a 24-hour period, raising its total to 7,011,756, according to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO).

SURGING CASES

In recent weeks, a number of European countries have recorded a sharp rise in new COVID-19 cases, with some even breaking daily records at the peak of the pandemic earlier this year.

France, one of the hardest-hit in Europe, registered 26,896 new cases in a single day on Oct. 10, hitting an all-time high. This is in stark contrast to an average daily infection of some 4,500 in the first half of April when the spread of the coronavirus was accelerating and the epidemic started to overwhelm hospitals.

LATEST NUMBER IN HUNGARY: Hungary records its highest daily death toll from COVID-19

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that the number of cases in his country had quadrupled over the past three weeks and there were more people in hospital now with the respiratory disease than when the country went into lockdown in March.

The UK reported another 13,972 cases in the past 24 hours, raising the total to 617,688.

Germany, which has been widely considered as a model in Europe when it comes to the tackling of COVID-19, registered 2,467 cases in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 325,331 on Monday. Last week, daily infections in the country rose sharply, peaking at more than 4,000 on Oct. 8.

With a population of some 11 million, Belgium has seen “an almost exponential increase” in the number of COVID-19 cases, totaling 162,258 to date.

The Sciensano national public health institute has reported a daily average of 4,154 new cases in the past seven days, a week-on-week increase of 89 percent. And the National Crisis Center estimated Monday that the country could reach 10,000 new infections per day by the end of this week.

STRICTER MEASURES

Amid the new wave of surging cases, European countries have been tightening restrictions to get a hold on the coronavirus, with several major countries rolling out new measures on Monday.

Johnson announced that a new three-level COVID-19 alert system will be implemented across England. Under the new rules, the country is divided into medium, high or very high-risk categories. “Very high” risk areas will see pubs, gyms, bars and casinos shut, with all but essential travel banned.

Noting that France is “in a strong second wave,” French Prime Minister Jean Castex said that his government would envisage all options, including local confinement to slow down the rapid circulation of the virus and avoid strain in health institutions.

He also announced that a new version of StopCovid, the app for tracking coronavirus patients, would be launched on Oct. 22.

With a cumulative caseload of 359,569, Italy is set to impose new restrictions on social life. Health Minister Roberto Speranza said that the new rules would include limits or a full ban on parties at home, as well as a prohibition for people to linger outside bars, clubs, and stores in order to avoid gatherings.

Also on Monday, Croatia announced that wearing a mask is now required in all public indoor settings where a minimal two-meter distance can not be maintained.

According to the WHO, face masks should be used as part of a comprehensive set of measures to suppress COVID-19 transmission and save lives. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020, wearing masks in public has been widely accepted in Asian countries like China, South Korea, Japan and Vietnam.

On Monday night, the Czech government announced more restriction measures to curb the spread of the virus, after the country had declared a state of emergency last week.
According to new rules, starting from Wednesday, all types of schools except for kindergartens will be closed in the country until Nov. 1. Restaurants, bars and clubs will stay closed until the end of the state of emergency scheduled for Nov. 3, and the drinking of alcohol in public places will also be banned.

October 13, 2020

Explore the Hungarian pizzeria of this year’s Top 50 Pizza Europe Award

Even though it is getting difficult to keep track of all the Italian restaurants in Budapest, the recent success of Belli di Mamma is proof that Hungarians (and Italians living in Hungary) take pizza very seriously.

Belli di Mamma is an Italian restaurant in Budapest’s lively Akácfa Street right in the heart of the Jewish district. Not only does the place have a vast selection of Neapolitan pizzas but also offer many other staples of Italian cuisine, including wines and desserts.

And this authentic Italian restaurant also happens to be the best in Hungary, at least according to the jury of Top 50 Pizza Europe Award, who have chosen Belli di Mamma as the 44th best pizzeria in Europe.

As Promotions writes, the staff was genuinely surprised by the results; as they wrote on the restaurant’s Facebook page, the acknowledgement has made them incredibly happy, and have also promised to come back with “some surprises” soon.

belli di mamma budapest 1 — Photo: www.facebook.com/bellidimammabp

Top 50 Pizza Europe Award is an annual ranking that lists the European eateries where the best pizzas are made outside of Italy. According to the Award’s official page, what made the Hungarian place stand out is

“the Margherita which conveys the philosophy of this establishment. Good raw ingredients, excellent leavening, perfect baking.”

Having Europe’s 44th best pizza on the menu is genuinely extraordinary, and in case you are looking for even more authentic flavours, you do not have to go far, either: Via Toledo Enopizzeria in Vienna came second in the ranking, just before Bijou in Paris. This year’s best European pizzeria (outside Italy, at least) is 50 Kalò di Ciro Salvo in London.

Address: Akácfa Street 45. 1072 Budapest

For the official website or Facebook page of Belli di Mamma, click here or here.

Read alsoTaste Hungary! – Recipe of the irresistible Hungarian pizza “Langalló”

September 17, 2020

PM Office: Europe should not repeat mistakes made during 2015 migration crisis

Europe should take care to avoid repeating the mistakes made during the migration crisis in 2015, the head of the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Office told the Austrian daily Die Presse on Thursday.

Gergely Gulyás said Hungary supported Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s standpoint and rejected accepting migrants. Asylum requests should be assessed outside the territory of the European Union, in transit zones or at embassies, he said.

Gulyás called the European Union’s Article 7 procedure against Hungary a “politically motivated attack”, adding that Hungary had amended its laws whenever the EU saw it necessary.

Regarding recent protests against the reorganisation of Budapest’s University of Theatre and Film Arts, Gulyás said it was “unheard of that a government should be accused of curbing academic independence when it is in fact removing state supervision by putting leadership in the hands of an independent foundation.”

The full article in German can be accessed HERE

Hungary sends aid to refugees on Lesbos

The Hungarian Disaster Management Directorate (OKF) on Thursday dispatched aid worth 22 million forints (EUR 61,000) to the island of Lesbos, after a refugee camp was levelled in a fire there on September 9.

The Moira camp housed 12,000 people before the fire, and the Greek government has appealed for international help to handle the crisis, OKF spokesman Daniel Mukics said.

The Hungarian package contains hygiene equipment and kitchen utensils, blankets, sleeping bags and infant care items, Mukics said.

Read alsoEU, Mediterranean countries must cooperate to stop illegal migration, says commissioner

September 17, 2020

This small Hungarian town could be the geographical centre of Europe

Similarly to a handful of other places on the old continent, the small town of Tállya in north-eastern Hungary could be another geographical midpoint of Europe, but there is no straightforward way to come to a definite conclusion.

There have been several attempts in history to determine the geographical midpoint of Europe, which is not as straightforward as it first seems: depending on what extreme points of the continent are taken into account, claims that have been made span over a vast area on the old continent.

Since there are a lot of interpretations as to what we can consider “Europe”, calculations have led to several different results, including what we can call the geographical midpoint of continental Europe and the centre of the European Union, for example.

As Promotions writes, the geographical midpoint of Europe was first calculated by Polish astronomer and cartographer Szymon Antoni Sobiekrajski in 1775 – according to him, the centre of Europe was in the town of Suchowola near Białystok in today’s north-eastern Poland.

More than two hundred years later, calculations are still ongoing. The geographical midpoint of Europe has since been claimed by Lithuania (the town of Girija), Estonia (Saaremaa), Slovakia (Kremnické Bane), and Ukraine (Rakhiv). The country with the largest number of potential centre points is Belarus: the towns of Polotsk, Vitebsk, and Babyrusk all claim to be the centre of Europe. And in 1992, shortly after the collapse of communism, Hungary too submitted a candidate.

The Hungarian town that claims to be the geographical centre of Europe is Tállya in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County in northern Hungary.

Tállya is a small village in the Tokaj wine region with around 1,800 inhabitants. It was a significant settlement during the Middle Ages and an important base for the Kuruc army during Francis II Rákóczi‘s War of Independence in the early 1700s.

Similarly to Suchowola in Poland and Girija in Lithuania, which is currently recognised by the Guinness World Records as the official geographical midpoint of Europe, there is a monument in Tállya that reminds visitors of the settlement’s curious geographical position.

Read alsoThis small Hungarian town could be the geographical centre of Europe

September 14, 2020

Shocking! Every fifth to sixth death can be attributed to environmental pollution in Hungary

The latest report by the European Environment Agency on the effects of environmental pollution reveals significant discrepancies among European countries, and it brings no good news regarding the health conditions in Hungary, either.

The European Environment Agency has recently published a report that reveals how environmental pollution continues to have a negative impact on the health and well-being of the European population, reports Qubit.

According to data from the WHO, 13% of all deaths in the EU were attributable to environmental factors: in 2012, various forms of pollution led to around 630,000 premature deaths.

The report reveals that the environmental factor that contributes to the highest number of deaths (400,000) is air pollution. It is followed by noise pollution with 12,000 cases, while the rest is associated with the negative impacts of climate change, with heatwaves regarded as the most dangerous among extreme weather conditions.

A divide between the West and the East

According to the report, poverty-stricken and more vulnerable areas are more severely affected, but there is also a divide between western and eastern countries on the continent. While in countries like Iceland and Norway, environmental factors are only responsible for 9% of deaths, we find the highest ratio in Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina, at 27%.

Considering the European Union only, it is Romania that has the worst figures on deaths attributable to environmental pollution (19%), and sadly, the study reveals that Hungary (just before Bulgaria in second to last place) is not in a particularly good position:

although the report does not reveal all the individual results, Hungary’s classification (17% to 22%) suggests that every fifth to sixth death in our country can be attributed to poor environmental conditions.

The study also examined the contribution of PM_2.5to the number of deaths in European countries. The presence of these tiny particles in the air is the result of burning solid fuels, as well as the use of diesel and two-stroke cars. Similarly to the numbers above, these results show another striking difference between western and eastern countries.

As regards NO₂ pollution, the primary cause of which is road traffic, Hungary is in a slightly better position (Spain and Italy, on the other hand, performed surprisingly badly in this comparison), but Qubit warns about the increasing trend of vehicle purchases in Hungary (the number of diesel cars, for example, increased from 740,000 in 2013 to 1.06 million in 2017).

The study also reveals to what extent the Roma people, the largest ethnic minority in Europe, have access to safe drinking water in each country. As opposed to countries with a relatively good ratio (2% for Spain and Czechia), Hungary is at the other end of the spectrum with 33% – although still far from Romania’s 68%.

The solution: more bicycles and green areas

In the report, the European Environment Agency also puts forward some proposals to mitigate the negative effects of pollution. According to the report, the most efficient way is to “expand high-quality green and blue spaces in urban areas” (e.g. parks and waters), which could bring about other positive changes for the society. Another group of measures aims to limit the volume of road traffic, which, as we have seen above, is another major contributor to environmental pollution.

Luckily, there have been several good examples of health protection measures in Europe. Several countries, including the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy, have introduced low emission zones with restricted access for highly pollutant vehicles, while countries like France and Belgium have been widely promoting bicycle transport, even though many of these initiatives have been driven by the current pandemic.

Read alsoNearly 40,000 die in Hungary of deaths that could have been prevented

September 13, 2020

From Hungary to Germany: travelling during a pandemic

Even though mask signs and hand sanitisers are found everywhere in larger cities, the southern German state of Bavaria still experienced a lively summer with a decent number of tourists enjoying themselves in the open-air areas.

With over 245,000 registered cases and rising, Germany is a major hotspot of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. According to the Hungarian government’s Consular Service website, the most hard-hit states are North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, and Baden-Württemberg. Based on a trip taken at the end of August to two Bavarian cities, Bamberg and Nuremberg, here are some impressions on how the southern German state seems to be handling the current pandemic.

Travelling there

Similarly to Hungary, Germany has its own classification of countries based on their safety. Besides, each state has its own regulations in force, which visitors are strongly advised to check before travelling to a specific area. Hungary is currently classified as a safe country, and so there were no complications during our inbound travel.

When travelling by bus, train, or car, passengers also need to keep an eye on the regulations in Austria, the country situated between the two. Based on another travel experience from this summer, border crossings could have been affected by passengers who had visited a risk area shortly before their travel, but we had no such case this time.

Travelling back to Hungary went smoothly as well. The only remarkable difference was the increased number of (Hungarian) passengers, but considering the Hungarian government’s latest measure to shut down the borders from 1 September (we were two days away from that), it did not come as a surprise to anyone.

germany travel hungary coronavirus — Photo: Barbara Simon

Tourism

Regardless of how hardly the tourism was hit by the current pandemic, it did not come to a complete halt in Germany, either – even though most tourists I saw or heard were German-speaking. Museums and other sights of interest were open with all the necessary measures: limits on the number of visitors, combined with the obligatory mask wearing and hand sanitising.

At certain cafés and restaurants, visitors might be asked to provide some personal information with regards to their stay in Germany.

The hostel I stayed at gave me a more realistic picture about international tourism: in the 8-bed female bedroom I booked, I only had one roommate, and she was a German resident. I saw a few more foreigners in the common room during breakfast (which is normally a buffet but this time was just a weird situation where I had to point at the sealed food next to the receptionist to indicate what I want to eat), but all in all, the otherwise nice and cosy hostel seemed very deserted.

Everyday life

Just like in Hungary, wearing a mask is obligatory in all closed public areas in Germany, although here special attention is paid to ensure people are doing it properly: shop assistants do not hesitate to warn you if your mask is not covering your nose, for example. Most small shops limit the number of customers that can be present at a time – I have seen examples where customers above the limit were asked to leave the shop. Not so surprisingly, this policy resulted in queues in front of some of these places.

travel germany hungary coronavirus — The city centre of Bamberg was very busy on that weekend
Photo: Barbara Simon

Life in the outdoors, on the other hand, has not changed radically. On the contrary: probably in an attempt to limit crowds in closed areas, I saw a remarkable number of “to-go” places where people could get drinks and consume them somewhere in the vicinity. Streets, terraces, and parks were just as flooded by people as on any regular (non-2020) summer day. The old town of Nuremberg, for example, was filled with carousels and large shooting galleries that not only limited the space in the otherwise ample square but also attracted lots of people of all ages.

Since I visited two cities during my trip, I also used some public transport. Mask signs should come as no surprise at this point, although patrolling police officers might do. I have learned that Bavaria was among the first states to introduce restrictive measures, and this is also the state with one of the highest fines in case of non-conformance: those who do not wear a mask in public areas could be fined for as much as EUR 250, as I also happened to hear from a police officer reminding a passenger of the rules in effect.

It is a huge plus that bathrooms at train stations and in most other places were exceptionally clean, and I must also add that visitors (including me) were not only reminded of the rules by the obligatory signs, but by the German people as well, to make sure we keep each other safe as much as possible.

Read alsoFrom Hungary to Croatia: travelling during a pandemic

September 2, 2020

Orbán: Hungarians ‘champions of survival’

One hundred years after Hungary’s defeat in the first world war and the post-war Trianon Peace Treaty “we Hungarians stand on the stage of European history as the champions of survival”, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said at the inauguration of the National Cohesion Memorial on Thursday.

“There is no other nation in the world that would have survived a century like this,” Orbán said at the memorial at Budapest’s Kossuth Square before a class of graduate military officers on the national holiday celebrating St. Stephen, Hungary’s first Christian king.

Hungary’s reckoning over the Trianon Treaty on the centenary of its signing this past June has allowed the nation to declare an end to “the era of Hungary’s hundred years of solitude”, the prime minister said.

After the collapse of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union, Hungary became the largest economy and most populous state in the Carpathian Basin, he said, adding that “this comes with responsibilities that we can’t shy away from”.

“We cannot ignore the lessons of the past one hundred years,” the prime minister said.

Orbán said this was the reason why his government had enacted the laws of the “nation-minded policies of the new era”, declared Hungary’s interests and intention to participate in a central European alliance based on national sovereignty, freedom and common interests.

“On August 20 we must remind ourselves that independent statehood that guarantees a nation its own homeland is more of an exceptional state of being than a natural one,” Orbán said.

“A people that desires its own homeland and wants to live its life according to its own laws and customs – like the Hungarian people – must fight for its sovereignty and freedom every minute of its existence,” he added. “We must remember the strength, determination, talent, blood, sacrifices and valor required for us to be able to stand here today.”

Addressing the graduate officers, Orbán said few of them knew the role they would play in shaping the future of “a Hungary that is in the process of regaining its self-esteem, breaking free of the hundred years of captivity of Trianon . and ridding itself of the miserable gown of defeatism and subservience.”

Orbán said the “simple truth” that “life is a duty” was what would give life to the country’s economic prosperity and offer guidance to new generations.

“Selfishness has ensnared European life but those who aim to fulfil their duties will never lose their way,” he added.

Orbán said he believed that the new graduate officers embodied the “ideal of the Hungarian soldier ready to use his weapon, or if need be, lay down his life to perform his duty”.

The fewer people there are who perform their duties the harder others will have to work to perform theirs, he said, adding that this was the mission awaiting Hungarian military officers.

Concerning the newly-inaugurated National Cohesion Memorial, Orbán said it was worthy of completing “the panorama of the nation’s main square”.

The prime minister said his government had fulfilled the duty it had undertaken on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Trianon Treaty.

The centenary of the treaty’s signing was declared the year of national cohesion and the anniversary was commemorated, although the threat posed by the pandemic made it impossible to organise a complete event. The lessons to be learned from the past century and the loss of Hungary’s territories were analysed and confronted by academics, representatives of Hungary’s cultural life, ethnic Hungarian communities beyond the border, churches and politicians, he said.

Orbán said Hungary now not only had to declare that it has survived but also that “flying its flags high and having regained its self-esteem, it stands on the verge of great times and ready to win”.

Hungary is a safe home that is prepared to welcome everyone back who wants to be a part of building the nation, the prime minister said. “After a hundred years we’ve finally understood that Hungarians can never again afford themselves the luxury of weakness.”

Orbán said the seven tenets of Hungary’s nation-minded policies in the 21st century were that the homeland exists only as long as there is someone there to love it, every Hungarian child is a new “lookout”, truth is worth little without power, Hungarians will only get to keep what they can defend, “every match lasts until we win”, it is the country, not the nation that has borders and that no Hungarian is alone.

He said that while Hungarians celebrate their national cohesion, “Europe’s ship has become stranded and its position on the global political stage and in global trade has taken a hit.”

The “uncontestable advantage” of European nations, the European spirit and technology is no more, the prime minister said.

Orbán questioned whether European leaders were up to the task of reinventing the continent’s politics and economy and whether the nations of Europe would understand this and accept the effect it had on their lives and find their way back to “the world of hard work, sensible management and a responsible lifestyle”.

Read alsoAugust 20 – Hungarians mark national holiday – PHOTOS

August 21, 2020

Hungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

The Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago reported in a new study that Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary belong to those European countries where the air is the most polluted. Other countries include Belarus, Lithuania and Latvia.

Several Hungarian cities hit by poor air quality

Kafkadesk reported that Poland stands out as the most polluted country in Europe. The study writes that “the cities of Warsaw and Lodz, and their surrounding areas, see high levels of particulate pullulation,” furthermore “residents in Warsaw may loose 1.2 years life expectancy.” Poland is followed by Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. As Poland’s reliance on coal power is accounting for more than 70 per cent of energy supply, this seems to be the reason behind the country’s bad air quality.

Additionally, the report finds that the most polluted areas are Moravskoslezský in the Czech Republic, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County in Hungary, Košický in Slovakia, and Warsaw in Poland.

There is some good news, though. Compared to the situation two decades ago, Europeans as a whole have gained nine months in life expectancy. Just in the Silesian province of southern Poland, inhabitants gained two years. During the first few months of the coronavirus epidemic, the V4 countries, especially Poland and Slovakia, have seen a considerable improvement in air quality as many people stayed at home and did not drive a car for weeks, even months.

Budapest has the worst air quality in Europe after the epidemic

As part of the European Green Deal, Poland will also be among the primary recipients of funds that aims the transition from coal to cleaner energy sources.

Read the full study HERE

Read alsoHungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

August 20, 2020

ECHR: Hungary should allow gender and name change for Hungarians and non-Hungarians

The European Court of Human Rights has ended a five-year-long debate after stating that Hungary should allow both Hungarian and non-Hungarian citizens the rights to legally approve their gender and the name-changing procedure involved. The decision came two days after the Hungarian Government denied the rights of transgender people in the country.

Read alsoIndependent: Orbán quashes transgender rights in Hungary, rest of Europe is next

Háttér Társaság writes that the history of the debate started five years ago when a transgender man from Israel arrived in Hungary in the summer season and asked for refuge. Because he was transgender in Israel, the man was threatened with persecution from local authorities, and he was registered as a refugee. However, his official papers still had the data of a female, and the man decided to ask for a legal name and gender change in his papers. As Hungary did not have any kind of procedures back then, his request was sent back, and the man was asked to return to Israel to change his papers under the threat of getting caught by authorities because of his sexual orientation.

The man asked for the help of Háttér Társaság (Háttér Society), founded in 1995, which is the largest and oldest currently operating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) organisation in Hungary.

The Constitutional Court ruled in 2018 that there was an unconstitutional omission because the law did not provide for legal gender recognition and related name change for trans people legally residing in Hungary permanently. The Constitutional Court gave a deadline of December 31, 2018, for the legislator to adopt new legislation, but the government did not make the necessary steps.

With the help of the Strasburg Court, the man was able to advance successfully with his case. The court announced that Hungary should allow Hungarian citizens and non-Hungarian citizens the rights to gender and name change. Apart from officially stating the order, the court and the ECHR fined the Hungarian state with EUR 8,000.

Hátter Társaság reported that Hungarian authorities contributed to the case with cynism as they were aware of the fact that the man was in danger in his home country but asked him to go back to change his papers in Israel anyway.

LGBT acceptance is low in Hungary and even worse in Poland

ILGA-Europe has produced its latest “Rainbow Map” on which they rank European countries by an overview of the legal situation and acceptance of LGBT people. This is called the Rainbow Index. According to ILGA-Europe, a Brussels-based non-governmental organisation, the least accepting country in Europe is now Poland, and Hungary could do better as well.

READ MORE HERE

July 18, 2020

Europe faced with dilemma between reopening and COVID-19 resurgence

It is still early to celebrate the waning of COVID-19 and restore the long-awaited normality to Europe, as recent statistics show that the pandemic is far from over on the continent.

However, failing economic conditions and collateral damage can be as deadly as the coronavirus. Returning to comprehensive lockdown measures is the last thing to do for many, even though the virus has made a comeback in some countries.

GRADUAL REOPENING

In the past three months, the COVID-19 pandemic has halted global economic growth and taken its toll on Europe, a most sought-after tourist destination and the powerhouse of manufacturing industries.

According to a report published Wednesday by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the world’s tourism sector could lose at least 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars, or 1.5 percent of the global gross domestic product (GDP), due to a standstill of nearly four months caused by COVID-19.

Such European countries as Croatia, Greece, Ireland, and Spain are among the Top 15 most affected countries, whose GDP might suffer the most from tourism losses.

Coronavirus-related losses in tourism have a knock-on effect on other economic sectors that offer goods and services to holidaymakers, such as food, beverages and entertainment, the report warned.

Read alsoTourism returns as second half of 2020 begins

Greece has managed to keep its infection and fatality rates relatively low since the outbreak. The country, highly reliant on tourism as the industry contributes about 20 percent of its GDP, is one of the first European Union (EU) countries that opened borders to foreigners.

In mid-June, Greece reopened its border and some of its airports to tourists. Travelers mainly from European countries are allowed to enter with samples or necessary testing upon arrival. As of Wednesday, Greece fully opens all its airports to flights from abroad.

Croatia first opened its borders to neighboring Slovenia as early as May, and later to around 10 more European countries with relatively good epidemiological situations. On Wednesday, a train with 550 tourists from the Czech Republic arrived in Croatia’s coastal city Rijeka, the first of its kind since the COVID-19 outbreak. The train will run regularly during the peak of the tourist season of July and August. So far, 30,000 tickets have been sold.

Romania implemented the relaxation measures in stages starting from May 15. The southeastern European country has lifted border control measures against 22 European countries since June 15. At present, Romania’s international highway and rail traffic have been fully opened, while the national airline Tarom continues to resume more routes.

The Belgian authorities have also authorized citizens of EU and Schengen area countries (“EU+”), as well as third-country nationals legally resident in the EU and their family members, to travel at their convenience in the “EU+.”

TRICKY VIRUS

Repeated warning of a possible resurgence of COVID-19 in the European region has now become a reality, Hans Kluge, regional director for Europe of the World Health Organization (WHO), said on June 25.

Kluge noted that 30 countries in the region had seen increases in cumulative cases over the past two weeks, and in 11 of these countries, the accelerated transmission has led to “a very significant resurgence.”

In Serbia, the number of newly confirmed cases per day has been gradually increasing since the state of emergency was lifted on May 6. On June 23, the crisis response team ordered mandatory use of facial masks in public transportation and recommended people to wear them also in indoor spaces.

However, a week after these measures, the number of newly confirmed cases in Serbia has more than doubled. A similar situation was also seen in neighboring Montenegro.

Although Montenegro declared “corona-free” on May 24 after recording zero active cases, new patients started appearing from June 15. The Montenegrin government claimed that the new cases had been imported from regional countries, namely Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH).

Read alsoMerkel and von der Leyen push for coronavirus recovery fund, calling for EU solidarity

The number of newly confirmed cases in BiH on Thursday was 180, the highest since the outbreak in early March. In the first wave of the outbreak, the biggest daily increase was 104, while since the second outbreak on June 24, the daily count has been higher than the peak of the first round.

The epidemic has also rebounded in Romania since mid-June. According to the statistics, the average number of new cases per day from June 16 to June 30 was over 320, while the daily cases in the first half of June were 194. New cases skyrocketed to 460 and 411 on June 25 and 26 respectively.

What is noticeable is the increase in the number of young people infected. Some hospitals are beginning to experience bed shortage. Local health experts believe that people’s relaxation of the epidemic prevention awareness, such as not wearing masks according to regulations or gathering in large numbers, are among the main reasons for the rebound of the outbreak.

Croatia has recorded a notable surge of COVID-19 infections since two weeks ago, after nearly a month with no or less than five daily new cases.

On June 22, the final match of the Croatian leg of the humanitarian tennis tournament Adria Tour, which was initiated by World No. 1 player Novak Djokovic, was abruptly canceled after Bulgarian player Grigor Dimitrov announced he had tested positive for coronavirus.

The world’s best tennis players, including Borna Coric, Goran Ivanisevic and Djokovic, as well as some coaches who participated in the tournament all tested positive in the following days.

On Friday, there were 96 newly confirmed cases in Croatia in 24 hours, the same number recorded on April 1, which makes the biggest daily rise in new cases since the start of the epidemic in late February.

Poland, Germany and Spain recently saw a resurgence of COVID-19 clusters at schools, coal mines, and food production facilities, according to Kluge. He warned that health systems are being brought to the brink once again in Europe.

July 4, 2020

UK lifts quarantine requirement for entrants from Hungary, among others

Visitors from a number of countries, including Hungary, will not need to be isolated on entering the United Kingdom, starting next Friday, the British transport ministry announced.

Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, France, Spain, and Italy are included in the list of several dozen countries, but citizens of Portugal, Sweden, the US, China, Bulgaria and Romania continue to be required to stay in a 14-day quarantine.

UK COVID-19 deaths rise to 44,131 as another 137 patients die

Another 137 COVID-19 patients have died in Britain as of Thursday afternoon, bringing the total coronavirus-related death toll in the country to 44,131, the British Department of Health and Social Care said Friday.

Read alsoUK PM says 2-meter social distancing rule to be cut to “1 meter plus”

The figures include deaths in all settings, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community.

As of Friday morning, 284,276 people have tested positive for the disease in Britain, a daily increase of 544, according to the department.

Read alsoUK, EU need to conclude negotiation “in good time”

As of Friday morning, there have been 10,120,276 tests of the novel coronavirus in the country, with 205,673 tests on Thursday, said the department.

July 4, 2020