Spain pushing for UK to exclude Canary and Balearic islands from quarantine, minister says

FILE PHOTO: Spain’s Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez makes a statement to the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU Foreign Ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Belgium July 13, 2020. Virginia Mayo/Pool via REUTERS

MADRID (Reuters) – The Spanish government is focused on convincing Britain to exclude the Balearic and Canary islands from a 14-day quarantine it abruptly imposed on all travellers returning from Spain, Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said on Sunday.

“Spain is safe, it is safe for Spaniards, it is safe for tourists,” Gonzalez Laya told reporters.

She added that her government would take measures regarding other countries if needed, based on epidemilogic data, but that there would be no tit-for-tat retaliation taking place.

Reporting by Ingrid Melander; Writing by Nathan Allen