The U.S. State Department has warned against travelling to Germany due to the current massive spread of the coronavirus.

“Avoid travel to Germany. If you must travel to Germany, make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel,” it stated.

The State Department’s “Level 4 do not travel” advisory was linked to a fresh assessment of the situation by the U.S. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Because of the current situation in Germany, even fully vaccinated travellers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants,” the CDC warned.

Germany faces a rising wave of coronavirus infections.

Medical professionals and Chancellor Angela Merkel have warned that hospitals are already struggling in some regions.

The number of new cases doubles every 12 days in the country.

Germany and Denmark are among countries that have been issued with a ‘Level 4’ warning, the CDC’s highest level on a four-point scale.

Warning level 4 also applies to other countries in Europe currently severely affected by the pandemic, including Belgium, Croatia, Hungary, Austria, and the Netherlands.

On the other hand, for France and Italy, ‘Level 3’ applies, in which travellers are urged to review their travel plans.

Before the pandemic, the highest level of travel warnings was mostly reserved for crisis and conflict countries like Afghanistan and Iraq.

(dpa/NAN)