A confluence of factors is pointing to Europe enjoying "a long period of tranquility" in the Covid-19 pandemic, a World Health Organization official said on Wednesday.
WHO Europe director Hans Kluge said that two years after the coronavirus began wreaking havoc and disrupting daily lives, the continent was on the cusp of a "ceasefire."
"In the European Region, there is a singular opportunity to take control of the transmission," Kluge said.
He called out three elements working in Europe's favour: a high level of infection- and vaccine-induced immunity; the coming shift to warmer weather; and the "lower severity" of the Omicron variant.
"This period of higher protection should be seen as a ceasefire that could bring us enduring peace," he said, so long as vaccinations continue, particular attention is paid to the most vulnerable and individuals continue to make responsible decisions.
"I believe that it is possible to respond to new variants that will inevitably emerge - without re-installing the kind of disruptive measures we needed before," Kluge said.
A number of countries - including Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden - have recently announced they would end, or extensively relax, Covid-19 restrictions.
Kluge's optimism comes in spite of a high number of new infections. The WHO's European Region recorded 12 million new cases in the past week, the highest weekly case incidence since the start of the pandemic.
