Israel to start opening borders in March

Israel will resume international tourism from March 2021. Residents who have passed two stages of vaccination and received a ‘green passport’ will be able to travel without the need to go through quarantine and take a PCR test before departure, and after landing, Report informs, referring to RIA Novosti.

The agreement has already been concluded with Cyprus. It is expected that on February 8, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will arrive in Israel to discuss the conditions under which the tourist exchange with this state will be resumed, the press service of the Israeli tourism ministry reports.

Similar negotiations are underway with Serbia, Seychelles, Romania, and Georgia.

"Israel is the absolute world leader in terms of the rate of vaccination of the population. As of February 4, about 37 percent of the country citizens received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine. About 21 percent received the second dose," said Vladimir Shklyar, director of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism department in Russia and the CIS.

"We are optimistic about the future and expect the full opening of the borders in mid-2021," he added.

Passenger flights between Israel and other countries have been suspended. The exception is special humanitarian flights.