Question écrite de
Mme Maria SPYRAKI
-
Commission européenne
Subject: Reporting of new coronavirus (COVID-19) cases by Turkey
According to the European Centre for Disease Control, no cases of or deaths from the new coronavirus (COVID-19) have been recorded in Turkey. At the same time Iran, which is has a border with Turkey, has the third largest number of deaths from the disease worldwide and the fourth largest number of cases. In addition, Turkey is a popular tourist destination, attracting 51.9 million visitors in 2019, and, according to the tourism minister, expects to attract 58 million tourists in 2020 with the goal of achieving USD 40 billion in tourism revenue. Finally, the country's health minister confirmed on Monday, 9 March, that there had been no case of the illness in the country, and confirmed that, of the 2 000 persons tested, not one had tested positive. In the same context, the minister noted that, if and when cases occurred, they would come from those arriving in Turkey from abroad.
In view of the above, will the Commission say
1. What sources of information does it rely on in recording and publishing the number of cases of coronavirus worldwide?
2. Does it consider it advisable to issue travel advice not to visit countries that do not comply with the coronavirus reporting procedure?
3. Does it consider that the possibly deliberate failure to report cases of coronavirus by countries such as Turkey helps prevent the virus spreading and protect of the health of European citizens?
Answer given by Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission
(10 July 2020)
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) issues the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the EU and worldwide (1) on a daily basis. ECDC uses a wide variety of sources, including the Early Warning and Response System (EWRS) where EU/European Economic Area countries and the United Kingdom report cases and deaths caused by all notifiable infectious diseases.
The reported cases and deaths by Turkey have been included in ECDC reporting since 12 March 2020 and cases and deaths have been increasing according to ECDC.
As Turkey is not a member of the EU, there is no obligation for Turkey to report cases to the EWRS.
According to ECDC, in case of a pandemic situation with a contagious virus as in this one and where almost all countries have reported cases, the overall epidemiological direction is of key importance to inform public health responses at all levels.
ECDC issues regular risk assessments (2) on COVID-19, which provides information on the pandemic and measures to contain it.
Advice on travel is a national competence. The Commission does however provide an overview of travel advice and guidelines on border measures (3).
⋅1∙ https://qap.ecdc.europa.eu/public/extensions/COVID-19/COVID-19.html
⋅2∙ https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/rapid-risk-assessment-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-pandemic-eighth-update
⋅3∙ https://ec.europa.eu/info/live-work-travel-eu/health/coronavirus-response/travel-and-transportation_en