BRUSSELS • European Union countries have failed to settle on a final "safe list" of countries whose residents can travel to the bloc from next month, on which the United States, Brazil and Russia are set to be excluded.

Ambassadors from the 27 EU members had convened on Friday afternoon to establish criteria for granting quarantine-free access from Wednesday.

A redrawn list of 10 to 20 countries was put to them, but many said they needed to consult first with their governments, diplomats said. The list did not include the US, Brazil or Russia, one said.

Discussions were continuing overnight, with the EU countries expected to give informal replies by yesterday evening, people familiar with the matter said.

US passengers may be allowed to travel if they meet certain conditions such as passing temperature checks, two American officials said.

The European Commission had advised that the bloc first lift internal border controls and then gradually open up to outsiders. But the first step has not gone according to plan.

Greece is mandating Covid-19 tests for arrivals from a range of EU countries, including France, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, with self-isolation until results are known.

The Czech Republic has said it will not allow in tourists from Portugal, Sweden and part of Poland.

There is broad agreement that the bloc should open up only to those with a similar or better epidemiological situation, but there are questions about how to assess that.

Based on data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for the two weeks to Thursday, a range of countries are clearly in a worse situation than the EU.

They include the US, Mexico, Brazil and much of Latin America, Russia, South Africa and Saudi Arabia.

REUTERS