Czechia ends border checks with Austria over foot-and-mouth

The Czech Republic ended border controls with neighboring Austria imposed over foot-and-mouth, effective as of midnight Monday. Agriculture Minister Marek Výborny said that the checks, which were imposed in March in connection with outbreaks of the disease in Hungary and Slovakia, are no longer deemed necessary, since Austria has significantly tightened controls at the Austrian-Hungarian border which affords sufficient protection. Moreover Austria has not recorded any outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the past weeks. On the other hand the border checks and restrictions imposed on traffic from Slovakia and Hungary remain in place.