EU ambassadors cancel meeting after new virus cases

The ambassadors to the European Union from the 27 members cancelled their Friday meeting after their chairwoman, Croatia's envoy, chose to isolate herself after working alongside a novel coronavirus victim. Croatia holds the rotating EU presidency and Ambassador Irena Andrassy was working earlier this week with a European Council official who has since tested positive for the virus, diplomats told AFP.

She has shown no symptoms herself, but chose to quarantine herself on Tuesday as a precaution and will undergo a test. "If she is not there next week, Germany would head the next meeting, because they are next in the round of presidencies," one diplomat said.

Another said all diplomats and staff that spent more than 15 minutes working within two metres (six feet) of the infected official have been asked to isolate themselves and get tested. There have now been at least three cases of novel coronavirus among staff at the various EU institutions in Brussels, disrupting but not halting work, and the European Parliament has cancelled several meetings.

Next week's parliamentary plenary session in Strasbourg has been postponed, and MEPs will meet instead in their second chamber in Brussels, which has been closed to the public.