Denmark and Norway create travel bubble, excluding Sweden -media

Norway and Denmark will resume free travel between the two countries, three Norwegian media outlets reported on Friday, creating a travel bubble that excludes Scandinavian neighbor Sweden, where the number of COVID-19 infections is higher. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg are due to hold news conferences about travel restrictions at 1400 CET (1200 GMT).

Norway is still considering whether to allow free travel to and from Sweden, Norwegian news agency NTB reported, citing anonymous sources. More than 4,000 Swedes have died from COVID-19, nearly four times the combined total of the other Nordic countries.

On Tuesday, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde warned that excluding Sweden from moves to open borders across the Nordic region as it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic would be a political decision and not justifiable on health grounds.