Greece is ready to launch the green certificate before the planned date of July 1, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told a news conference in Athens on Friday at the presentation of the new system for safe travel within the European Union.

Describing the EU Digital Covid Certificate as “a fast lane” facilitating travel and “restoring freedom of movement,” Mitsotakis explained that the new system incorporates national data into an EU platform so that people traveling within the block can verify that they have been vaccinated against Covid-19 or have recently recovered from or tested negative for the virus.

European Council President Charles Michel and EU Commissioner Margaritis Schinas – in Athens for celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of Greece’s accession to the bloc – also hailed the launch of the new system.

This video shows the full presentation, which was conducted in English, and included a detailed explanation of how it works by Digital Governance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis.

This article was first published on ekathimerini.com.