COVID-19: Australia's borders to remain closed indefinitely, says PM

Melbourne: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Sunday announced that the country's borders will remain closed indefinitely for the rest of the world to protect Australians from the deadly outbreaks of COVID-19 strains.

Australia's borders were slammed shut in March last year as the Coronavirus spread across the world.

Only citizens and permanent residents have been allowed to enter the country under some strict COVID-19 border rules.

On April 27, Australia suspended all direct passenger flights from India with immediate effect until May 15 due to the "very significant" spike in COVID-19 cases there.

According to media reports here, Morrison said he "doesn't see an appetite" for Australia opening to the world at the moment, and that he intended to be cautious

He further said that it was still unclear if it was safe to reopen even after the vaccination rollout completion and that he has no plans to abandon a "zero cases" target.

Morrison said that the country's borders will remain closed indefinitely for the rest of the world so as to protect Australians from the deadly outbreaks of COVID-19 strains.

I think what we're seeing at the moment is the appreciation of the people that the pandemic is not going anywhere," Morrison said.

All I know is once you let (COVID-19) back in again, you cannot get it out. You've crossed that threshold. We continue to roll out the vaccination programme, over the course of this year, and in the meantime, I intend to be cautious, it's in my nature, he added.

"We have to be careful not to exchange that way of life for what everyone else has," he said.