EU to accept tourists inoculated with EMA-approved Covid-19 vaccines

European Union (EU) will be ready to welcome anyone who has been vaccinated against Covid-19 with shots approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), said President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

"All 27 member states will accept, unconditionally, all those who are vaccinated with vaccines that are approved by EMA," Sputnik quoted Ursula von der Leyen as saying in a Sunday interview with The New York Times, without specifying when the tourist travel will open up exactly.

She did mention that travel between the United States and the EU will depend "on the epidemiological situation."

So far, the EU has authorised four Covid-19 vaccines: those developed by Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca/Oxford and Johnson & Johnson. Non-essential travel to the European Union has been predominantly banned amid the coronavirus pandemic, with some exceptions.

The European Commission's chief spokesman Eric Mamer said last week commenting on tourism travel to the EU that European citizens should choose Covid-19 vaccines authorised within the bloc to fully enjoy the right to travel freely across Europe once digital green certificates are introduced.