When Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) travels to Morocco and Denmark, unlike when Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck (Greens) travel to Canada, masks are compulsory due to the corona pandemic.
In addition, all passengers had to take a PCR test no more than 24 hours before departure from Berlin to the Moroccan capital on Monday evening and also a self-test on each subsequent day of travel in the morning.
In July, the Air Force lifted the general mask requirement for government pilots and has only recommended wearing masks since then. However, the organizers of the trip – i.e. the ministers, the Chancellor or the Federal President – are free to take further measures.
As the head of the delegation on the three-day trip to Canada, Scholz adhered to the specifications of the Air Force. In addition, a negative PCR test no more than 24 hours before the start of the journey was a prerequisite for traveling with you. No other self-tests were required during the trip. A government spokesman explained that the rules on board the plane “ensure a high level of protection”.
Baerbock had never lifted the mask requirement on her travels. On their current journey in an Airbus A340, almost 50 delegation members, security forces and journalists are on board.
Scholz and Habeck also flew to Canada in an A340 with more than 80 other passengers. Images of Habeck and journalists sitting close together caused criticism during the trip and sparked a debate about whether the mask requirement for scheduled flights to and from Germany should still be maintained.
