LONDON – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told South African President Cyril Ramaphosa that he would work to reopen international travel after Britain stopped flights from South Africa due to the spread of a new coronavirus variant.
South Africa has said that the travel ban is unjustified, and Britain did not engage with the country before introducing the flight ban.
“The Prime Minister spoke to President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa this afternoon. They discussed the challenges posed globally by the new COVID-19 variant, and ways to work together to deal with it and reopen international travel,” Johnson’s Downing Street office said.
“The Prime Minister commended South Africa’s rapid genomic sequencing and leadership in transparently sharing scientific data.”
