After months of closed skies, Greece will allow Israelis to visit, Israel’s Foreign Ministry announced Thursday after a meeting between Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and his Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi.
“I welcome Greece’s decision to allow tourism from Israel to Greece in the era of the coronavirus,” Ashkenazi said in a statement at the conclusion of the meeting in Jerusalem.
“This decision expresses the warm relationship between the countries and the common desire to return to a normal routine in the coronavirus era. We hope that more European countries will also adopt this decision.”
According to The Jerusalem Post, 600 Israeli tourists will be allowed to visit Greece per week, and will be allowed to stay in only four locations: Athens, Crete, Thessaloniki and Corfu.
It is also reported that Israeli tourists will be required to take a coronavirus test between arriving in Greece and stay in quarantine until they receive the test results.
The Foreign Ministry statement said that it was agreed that the two foreign ministries will formulate a plan that will allow Israeli tourists and businessmen to visit Greece.
Since the start of the pandemic, Greece has seen 5,623 infections and 212 deaths. Israel, by sharp contrast, has recorded over 88,000 cases and 643 deaths.
