ATHENS —  Government spokesman Stelios Petsas said Thursday Greece was shutting a border crossing with Albania as of Friday morning, and restricting traffic from another to only trucks. Three other crossings with Albania, North Macedonia and Bulgaria will remain open.

All those arriving at Greek land borders will now also be subject to a rapid coronavirus test, Petsas said, with those who test negative allowed to enter the country. The on-the-spot test is in addition to the requirement of proof of a negative coronavirus test a maximum of 72 hours before arrival.

On the course of the pandemic in Greece, Petsas said that the situation remains crucial. He noted that the figures cited by the National Public Health Organisation on Wednedsday show that rates of positivity for coronavirus in many parts of northern Greece remain very high, especially when the area had been in a state of lockdown for weeks.

This proved that citizens in many parts of Greece were more relaxed about the protection measures than the situation demanded, Petsas said, adding that this relaxed attitude would lead to a delay in the lifting of the lockdown. The government, in order to reduce the spread of the coronavirus in the community, is adopting additional measures, he added.