According to the Swedish radio station Sveriges Radio, hundreds of thousands of masks which were destined for Italy and Spain in order to fight the Covid-19 pandemic are being retained in France. This accusation has been made by the managing director of a Swedish medical products company, Mölnlycke, which, after having received the masks from China, sent them to France for distribution to various countries in need, but they are being held there because of a French Government order prohibiting the export of products during the crisis.

In the light of this, which is yet another demonstration of the lack of European solidarity, can the Commission answer the following questions:

Can it confirm whether France is blocking the onward transport to other EU countries of masks intended for protection against coronavirus?

What might it do to secure the release of the masks intended for Italy and Spain?

What will it do to prevent similar behaviour during the rest of the crisis and in future?