#WeTakeYouHome: Stories of Consular Support and Repatriation

Despite the current COVID-19 global crisis, almost 500 European citizens and residents stranded in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago have been able to return home to their families, thanks to the concerted efforts of the Member State missions and the EU Delegations in Barbados and in Trinidad and Tobago.

Two Condor flights destined for Frankfurt were organized on the 8^th and 9^th of April and included citizens/residents from 24 different European countries including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, The Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Italy, Poland, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Montenegro Switzerland, and the UK.

The repatriation was only possible due to the intensive efforts of the German Embassy in Port of Spain who coordinated on behalf of its citizens and also arranged the charters.  The EU Delegations coordinated with embassies and honorary consuls across the region and beyond, as well as with the respective Member States’ Headquarters.  This is part of a larger effort to repatriate European citizens worldwide and was organized under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, an instrument designed to assist the EU Member States in consular support operations.

In line with their efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19 pandemic, many countries in the region closed their borders to commercial international flights. The EU was therefore grateful for the support from all the regional Governments, to facilitate this important initiative.