EU needs to buy time on Omicron variant - EU's von der Leyen

RIGA - The European Union needs to buy time to assess fully the implications of the new Omicron variant, the president of the European Commission said on Sunday.

Von der Leyen, speaking during a visit to Latvia, said she took the variant seriously, which the World Health Organization had called a "variant of concern".

"We know that we are in a race against time.... And the scientists and manufacturers need two to three weeks to have a full picture about the quality of the mutations of this Omicron variant," she told a news conference.