Border closures in Europe must be avoided if possible, France says as it doesn’t want another lockdown at home

The closure of borders between European countries as a result of the coronavirus pandemic must be avoided as much as possible, French Junior European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said on Wednesday. While political responses to the crisis were always prone to change, responses such as European border closures “were to be avoided,” Beaune told France Inter radio.

French Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Wednesday the battle against the virus would be long, and urged people to comply with social distancing rules.

“We are not facing a second wave, the epidemic is continuing… Some people do not respect the rules. We must not let down our guard,” Veran told LCI television.

“We do not want to resort to another lockdown, we are examining the situation on a case-by-case basis… People must understand that we are going to live with this virus for a fairly long time,” he said.