Spain: EU should agree on cross-border travel

Spain's Foreign Minister says that European Union members should agree to a common approach to open borders, reestablish freedom of travel in the Schengen Area and define which countries outside it should be considered safe to travel from and to.

Arancha González Laya told Cadena SER radio that restarting cross-border travel should be decided collectively even if countries in the EU are phasing out lockdowns at different dates.

"We have to start working with our European partners to retake the freedom of movement in European territories," González Laya said on Tuesday, adding that she would like to see a European definition of which countries should be deemed as safe.

The minister said that Spain is eager to welcome tourists to shore up an industry that amounts to 12% of the country's GDP but that it plans to do it with "health, sustainability and safety."