Passengers arrive at Budapest Airport on the last day before border controls reintroduced in Budapest, Hungary on Aug. 31, 2020. The Hungarian government has decided to reintroduce the border controls that were in force during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Gergely Gulyas, head of the Prime Minister's Office, told the press on Friday. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
BUDAPEST, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Hungarian government has decided to reintroduce the border controls that were in force during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Gergely Gulyas, head of the Prime Minister's Office, told the press on Friday.
"From September 1, foreign citizens will be barred from entering Hungary, with a few exceptions. Hungarian citizens returning from abroad must be quarantined for 14 days or have to present two negative (COVID-19) tests taken two days apart," Gulyas said.
The measures are designed to ward off infections from abroad, Gulyas said, adding that the government would also tighten the diplomatic exceptions. The detailed rules will be decided by the Operational Staff meeting on Saturday.
The protection measures are expected to remain in force for at least one month.
According to official figures, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Hungary stood at 5,511 on Friday, with 3,759 recoveries and 614 fatalities. Enditem
