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Travelling overseas

The Australian Government does not currently have any COVID-19 requirements in place for travellers entering and departing Australia.

COVID-19 however continues to pose a health risk in Australia and overseas. We strongly encourage wearing masks and being vaccinated while travelling internationally. You should practice good cough and hand hygiene, and physically distance from others where possible.

Some countries, airlines and vessel operators may have COVID-19 travel requirements in place. Check the requirements of any:

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Travel insurance is important if you become sick with COVID-19 overseas. Make sure your insurance includes:

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• other add-ons like cruise specific insurance.

Some destinations also require travellers to hold travel insurance as a condition of entry.

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Check with your cruise provider or travel agent for up-to-date travel requirements for your ship and destination/s. You can also contact the relevant state or territory government to find out if any requirements apply for your destination.

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Cruise ships carry a higher risk for spreading disease compared to other types of travel. COVID-19, influenza, and other infectious diseases spread easily between people living and socialising in close quarters.

If an outbreak of COVID-19 occurs on your cruise, you may need to:

• quarantine on the ship
• disembark and follow the local rules in the state or territory or country you are in.

Before you travel, check the  Smartraveller advice on cruises . Contact your travel agent or cruise operator for specific information on their COVID-19 safety protocols.

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WA border open after two years of COVID-19 travel restrictions, bringing tears of joy in Perth

Topic: COVID-19

Western Australia is open after the state's hard border was removed overnight.

Key points:

• Quarantine-free travel into WA has resumed with the hard border lifted
• There have been tearful reunions at Perth Airport as the first flights landed

Vaccinated travellers are also pouring over the border by road

"Come home now" was the message to West Australians when it was announced the state would be closed to the rest of the country from April 5, 2020, over fears of the spread of COVID-19.

"We'll be turning Western Australia into an island within an island — our own country," Premier Mark McGowan said.

Almost two years later, 697 days to be exact, WA has opened back up to Australia and the world.

There were tears of joy as the first plane touched down just after midnight.

Among the first to arrive was federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese.

For many, March 3 will mean reuniting with loved ones for the first time since the pandemic began.

"I have my family back together again," one father said at the airport.

Some returning West Australians have not been home in almost two years.

"I can't believe [my daughter] is here. I still don't believe it," a mother said.

Amal Suleiman and her family landed from Melbourne this morning, with Ms Suleiman saying it was hard to explain how good it felt to be back in the state. 

“I can’t believe it, I’m just so happy,” she said. 

Travellers mass at the border

Travellers are also crossing through the state's open border by road.

A queue of those coming in from South Australia formed at the Eucla road checkpoint overnight, with some flagging fears the border could close again.

Chris drove from Brisbane, bringing his wife and dog back to Western Australia.

He moved to WA back in December when the border was expected to open on February 5.

They faced another month waiting to be reunited after Mr McGowan shifted the date, citing the Omicron outbreak in the east and the need to reach a higher third-dose vaccination rate.

The couple got out of Brisbane just as the floods started and had been driving since Sunday to make the crossing.

Chris thought the queue forming at the border was a product of uncertainty.

"He'll just backflip and close the border again," he said.

"They'll get a couple of cases and that, close the borders again and it's all over."

Lauren and Harley were crossing shortly after with their kids asleep in the back.

They are on an extended road trip trying to lap Australia, but they hit an impenetrable wall in the west.

"[We've been] trying to get in since February 1," Harley said.

They got stuck in South Australia and Victoria before the word came down that WA was open for business, and were also worried it might not last.

"We were sort of getting words from other people it was going to shut again and then we just thought we better get there while we can," Harley said.

'A massive relief' and 'like winning lotto'

Hugh Hunter was on his way from New South Wales to jackaroo at Spring Creek Station in the Kimberley.

He crossed at the Northern Territory border and said it was a massive relief to be able to enter the state.

“I’ve been looking forward to going down to work on the station for like, three years or more, all my life," he said.

"I’m going to chase a few cattle and ride a few horses, do all the cowboy stuff. I’m keen.

“It’s just a massive relief to be able to finally get here and do it.”

He said if the border rules had been relaxed any later in the year the work might not have been there.

Rex and Judy Booth left their Geraldton home in April last year to visit their children and grandchildren in the Northern Territory.

They have been trying to get back to WA since Christmas.

"We couldn’t afford to quarantine, which was going to cost about $2,500, so we were just waiting for when we could come through and not quarantine," Ms Booth said.

"[It's] wonderful, we can’t get over it, it’s unreal. Really happy and we’re just glad we’re on the other side now.

"My face is aching that much I’m just so excited to get through, it’s like winning the lotto."

Thousands expected to arrive within days

About 6,000 interstate arrivals are expected inside the first two days of the reopening.

Ten international flights – from Dubai, Singapore, Doha, Kuala Lumpur, and Auckland – will bring in another 2,000 arrivals by Friday.

While vaccinated arrivals are no longer required to quarantine, measures such as mask wearing, proof of vaccination and venue capacity limits are still in place.

"Coming back from Sydney, it's really like going back in time," one woman who landed in Perth on the first flight back said.

But she did not mind wearing a mask if it meant she could see her family.

WA's original border opening date was scrapped due to the Premier's concerns over low booster vaccination rates.

Less than a month later, just under 70 per cent of West Australians aged 16 and older have received their booster dose.

West Australians now have the chance to reacclimatise to quarantine-free travel, with hopes the hard border is a thing of the past.

"It helps having Zoom and videos calls … but I'm so happy to see her again," a husband said at the airport.

Despite surging case numbers and an air of uncertainty, little will take away from this moment so many have been waiting for.

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If you’re travelling into or out of western australia from march 3, here's what you need to know.

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If you develop symptoms such as severe shortness of breath or chest pain, call triple zero (000) immediately. Tell the phone operator and the paramedics on arrival if you have COVID-19.

How to avoid catching COVID-19 including getting vaccinated, wearing masks and physical distancing.

Does Australia have COVID-19 travel restrictions?

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People travelling to Australia no longer need to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result.

Some countries, airlines and ships may have their own testing, vaccination and face-mask rules. You should check with them before travelling.

During your travel to Australia, you’re encouraged to wear a face mask to reduce your risk of getting and spreading COVID-19.

For more information, visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

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• Travel Updates
• Health & Safety

WA government’s Covid response, including border closures, to be probed

The McGowan government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including brutal border closures for interstate travellers, will be examined in a new review.

New airport rule could change the way we fly

Urgent travel warning issued for Aussies

Holiday hotspot’s mpox airport move

Independent experts have been appointed to scrutinise the Western Australian government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The inquiry will scrutinise the state’s weeks of lockdowns, mask wearing rules, mandatory Covid testing, as well as hard border closures which provoked legal challenges from Queensland mining magnate Clive Palmer.

The three experts who will conduct the review are former WA Liberal Health Minister John Day, as well as Emeritus Professor Margaret Seares AO, and Dr Michael Schaper.

Mr Day was the state’s Health Minister a total of 12 years, first under Premier Richard Court, and again under Colin Barnett.

The trio will be tasked with examining the McGowan government’s pandemic plans and preparedness; programs like testing, free Rapid Antigen Tests, and the vaccination rollout; intragovernmental communication and co-operation; community support and engagement; and effectiveness of public health measures — including the border closure — on health outcomes.

“Unlike other states, Western Australians spent just 12 days in lockdown following the height of the pandemic in April 2020,” said Premier Mark McGowan on Thursday, who attributes the relatively mild Covid impacts in WA to “following the health advice.”

During the lockdowns, Perth residents were ordered to stay indoors, aside from essential travel and an hour of outdoor activity while masked every day.

But it was the hard border closure that drew the most criticism, with interstate and overseas travellers barred from entering Western Australia without a valid exemption.

The closure, under the state’s Emergency Management Act, was upheld by the High Court when challenged by Queensland’s Clive Palmer in February 2021.

And as Covid vaccinations became widely available, a mandatory vaccination policy was enacted for large swathes of public service workers, prompting some people to quit their jobs rather than get the jab.

“I have asked the independent and highly qualified reviewers to assess the best evidence and evaluate what worked, consider our preparedness for the future, and look at the economic, social and health outcomes of our response and management,” said Mr McGowan.

Despite being touted as independent, they’re not entirely removed from the WA Government.

Mr Day is currently the Chairman of the Board of the State Library of WA, and a board member of the Art Gallery of WA; Professor Seares is currently an independent reviewer for the State Government‘s Agency Capability Review Program; and Dr Schaper is a Board Member of the Gaming & Wagering Commission of WA, and Chair of the Board of Energy and Water Ombudsman WA.

“Consultation with public sector agencies and other stakeholders, including peak industry and community organisations, will be a critical part of the review process,” said WA’s Health Minister, Amber-Jade Sanderson.

A final report is expected in the middle of the year.

Opinion on social media is mixed, with some praising the Premier under a post on his official Facebook page on Thursday morning.

But others remain critical, even with nearly all of the Covid restrictions now lifted.

“This guy. Doubling down on the BS and congratulating himself once again. Amazing,” said one Facebook user.

“Wonder who these review experts are in bed with,” said another, questioning the integrity of the appointees.

But other comments welcomed the move: “Keep doing what you have been doing Covid has not run its course yet my family appreciates it,” said one resident.

The terms of reference for the review will be available online.

At the time of publishing, 880 people in Western Australia have died with Covid since the start of the pandemic.

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Home » News » Western Australia lifts restrictions from today

Western Australia lifts restrictions from today

Indoor mask mandates, proof of vaccination rules, and domestic arrival requirements are now a thing of the past in Western Australia as of today.

Masks will no longer have to be worn, except on public transport and in rideshare cars, at airports, correctional facilities, hospitals and other health care buildings, including aged care.

Vaccination proof will no longer be required at businesses and venues.

Workplace vaccine mandates remain in place, meaning very limited work opportunities for the unvaccinated.

“It is important to note that the vaccination mandates for employment remain,” the WA health minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said.

On top of this, G2G and third-dose vaccine requirements have been scrapped for all domestic arrivals.

The state will also join the rest of Australia in removing quarantine requirements for asymptomatic close contacts “under strict circumstances.”

Sanderson said that WA’s treatment of COVID is very encouraging and “an extraordinary achievement.”

“It’s time to start to go back to living with COVID. It is time for us to live with this disease,” she said.

Based on our current COVID-19 situation, it is clear we are past the peak of our Omicron wave. WA has secured the soft landing we planned thanks to efforts of Western Australians, our world-leading vaccination rates, and common-sense decision to delay the full border reopening. pic.twitter.com/RtuCW6oDzq — Mark McGowan (@MarkMcGowanMP) April 26, 2022

Gathering limits have been lifted, including the 2sqm rule for venues.

This means that events, nightlife venues, sporting competitions, and weddings will be able to continue as normal.

“We will be taking off the blanket indoor mask mandate — no more masks required at venues, the office or indoor gatherings,” she said.

However, travel to remote indigenous communities will still be restricted.

These areas will still have the now elsewhere removed restrictions.

International vaccine and quarantine requirements are still to be determined by the Federal Government, meaning non-Aussies will have to be double-dosed and unvaccinated people will have to undertake a week of isolation.

These requirements will be reviewed in four weeks.

Email the Travel Weekly team at [email protected]

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How Western Australia has managed to avoid large Covid-19 outbreaks

Ailsa Chang

Gus Contreras

Sarah Handel

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with reporter Jacob Kagi of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation about how Western Australia has managed their COVID-19 numbers throughout the pandemic.

Copyright © 2022 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Travel safety

The kimberley.

In the Kimberley, 2024 is the year to make road trip dreams a reality as the new Fitzroy River Bridge over the Martuwarra River opens this month, more than  six months ahead of schedule . Connecting the eastern part of the Kimberley to the west along the Great Northern Highway, this vitally important piece of infrastructure was destroyed less than 12 months ago during the catastrophic flooding from Ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie. The opening of the bridge will allow visitors and tourism operators – as well as the local community and freight industry – to drive the dream in the Kimberley, one of the last true wilderness areas on Earth.

COVID-19 Travel information

Western Australia is open to visitors from interstate and overseas. Here are some useful sources of information to read before you arrive: https://www.wa.gov.au/government/covid-19-coronavirus/covid-19-coronavirus-information-travellers

How to stay safe while you are here

• Wear a mask: masks are mandatory for people aged 12 years and older in hospital and health care settings, and aged care facilities. Mask wearing is encouraged, but not mandatory on public transport including school buses, taxies and rideshare vehicles, correction facilities and on aircraft.
• Physical distancing:  keep 1.5 metres away from others where possible.
• Soap up:  wash your hands regularly for 20 seconds with soap and water.
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Australia's Response to COVID-19

Anika stobart.

Grattan Institute, Melbourne, Australia

Stephen Duckett

Australia suffered two waves of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in 2020: the first lasting from February to July 2020 was mainly caused by transmission from international arrivals, the second lasting from July to November was caused by breaches of hotel quarantine which allowed spreading into the community. From a second wave peak in early August of over 700 new cases a day, by November 2020 Australia had effectively eliminated community transmission. Effective elimination was largely maintained in the first half of 2021 using snap lockdowns, while a slow vaccination programme left Australia lagging behind comparable countries. This paper describes the interventions which led to Australia's relative success up to July 2021, and also some of the failures along the way.

1. Introduction

On 1 November 2020, Australians woke to good news. It was national ‘doughnut day’. And no, we do not mean the sweet pastry. There was something even sweeter to enjoy: the first day of zero new community-acquired coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases Australia-wide since June 2020.

Australia is one of the few countries in 2020 that was able to bring new community-acquired COVID-19 cases down to zero. While not immune to the devastating virus, Australia's COVID-19 waves have been small, compared to many other countries.

Australia, with a population of 25 million, had two distinct waves of infection in 2020 with a cumulative total of about 28,000 cases and 900 deaths – about 110 cases and 4 deaths per 100,000 people. The vast majority of the 2020 cases and deaths came from Australia's second wave – which was much longer and more severe than the first, despite largely being contained within one city, Melbourne. In the first half of 2021, Australia had very few cases in the community, with intermittent short lockdowns to control any cases leaked into the community from quarantine.

Widespread testing, contact tracing, border closures and lockdowns – while not perfect – have been the major tools to reduce, and in some cases, eliminate community transmission. While vaccination is the best longer-term tool for managing the pandemic, the vaccine roll-out has been badly managed, and consequently very slow, with only 10% of the population fully vaccinated 5 months into the programme ( Figure 1 ).

Australia had two waves of COVID-19 infections as at July 2021. Seven-day moving average of new COVID-19 cases in Australia, 2020−21.

Source: Ritchie et al. ( 2020 ).

2. Part one: The Australian story (2020 to July 2021)

2.1. wave one: containing covid at the border.

It was a hot summer day on 25 January when Australia recorded its first COVID-19 case in Melbourne. Slowly, as the case count grew over the next six weeks, the distant threat of a looming pandemic started to become a reality.

2.1.1. Initial border response

Cases began to trickle into Australia via travellers returning from China. Over February, the risk rapidly escalated as COVID-19 spread globally. By March, more and more travellers arriving in Australia tested positive, particularly those coming from the United States and Europe. The Commonwealth (federal) government-imposed travel restrictions on top of an early ban on arrivals from China; first targeted at specific countries – Iran, South Korea, and belatedly Italy – and then at all non-residents by 20 March. 1 This was followed on 28 March by mandatory two-week hotel quarantining of Australian international arrivals, still in place today. At the same time, exercising their powers and responsibilities for public health, most of the eight states shut their borders to other states to prevent the spread from higher-risk areas.

2.1.2. National lockdown

When daily case numbers pushed past 200 in mid-March, an escalated nationally consistent response was instituted by the Prime Minister calling together leaders of all state governments in the form of a roundtable called ‘the national cabinet’. It met weekly to build consensus on social distancing and lockdown measures.

Very quickly, as new cases reached over 400 per day – mostly from overseas arrivals – all states went into partial lockdown. Many non-essential businesses closed their doors, schools mostly closed and went online, and Australians stayed at home ‘where possible’. Retail remained open and cafes and restaurants could do take-away.

The Commonwealth government rolled out a succession of economic response packages, including increased support for the unemployed – JobSeeker – and a wage subsidy for struggling businesses – JobKeeper.

For two months, Australian life slowed, and the rate of new COVID-19 cases fell, both from international arrivals and from transmission in the community.

By early May, COVID-19 cases were down to fewer than 20 new cases a day. Australians cautiously breathed a sigh of relief. By this stage, Australia had had in total about 7000 cases and 200 deaths, with two-thirds of the cases linked to quarantined travellers coming from overseas.

With new-found hope about containing the virus, and amid fears about the economic fallout escalating, on 8 May the national cabinet announced a three-step recovery plan to ease restrictions. Despite the Prime Minister seeking national consistency, the states adopted a ‘go-it-alone’ approach, with some easing restrictions faster than others, and endorsing localised responses to any outbreaks. Although Australia's international borders remained tightly closed, it was only a matter of time until cases would leak from quarantine into the community, and result in further outbreaks.

2.2. Wave two: Eliminating COVID-19 in the community

In mid-June when restrictions were partially eased, cases in Australia began to rise again, but this time, the infections were largely localised to one of Australia's eight jurisdictions – Victoria, of which Melbourne is the capital. The state of Victoria is home to a quarter of Australia's population – about 6.5 million people. Compared to second waves in other countries, Australia's second wave came early and proved to be relatively small. But it was much bigger than the first, and it had much more community spread. Other Australian states closed their borders to Victoria, keeping the rest of Australia largely COVID-free.

2.2.1. Quarantine breach

The second wave started with growing case numbers in Victoria in late June 2020, which were linked back to breaches in the state's hotel quarantine of international travellers. Social distancing restrictions were fairly relaxed at this stage, and COVID-19 quickly spread before public health authorities could control it.

2.2.2. Tackling the hotspots

Clusters began popping up in numerous locations, particularly in Melbourne's poorer suburbs. Health authorities targeted the ‘hotspots’ with a testing blitz – testing anyone, whether with or without symptoms – scrambling to prevent further spread. New cases were being discovered at a rapidly rising rate, growing from 40 to 60 new cases a day. In an effort to target high-risk areas, on 1 July the Victorian government put 10 postcodes across Melbourne into lockdown. Three days later, a further two postcodes were added to the list.

But this targeted response quickly proved to be insufficient. New cases continued to rise, breaching 100 new cases per day. Cases could not effectively be contained within dispersed suburbs of a major city, because people are connected to other areas through work and family. So, on 8 July the Victorian government extended the lockdown to the whole of Melbourne. Initially it was declared for six weeks, but after a month of unrelenting growth in cases that would have taken six months to control, the government announced a much stricter lockdown to more rapidly drive down transmission.

2.2.3. Strict and long lockdown

Victoria's second wave lockdown was strict and long – but ultimately proved effective. It included school and childcare closures, business-wide and retail shutdowns, with limited numbers permitted to work in certain industries, such as construction, and take-away only for cafes and restaurants. People were required to stay at home unless exercising or essential shopping. Exercise was limited to one hour a day. Shopping was limited to one person per household per day. Masks were mandatory both indoors and outdoors. Travel was restricted to a 5 km radius. It even included a night-time curfew – with no-one allowed outside past 8 pm. An internal, policed ‘border’ between Melbourne and the rest of the state further restricted travel.

2.2.4. Containing spread at the border

Meanwhile, other states witnessing the crisis unfolding in Victoria put a tighter seal on their internal borders. From 8 July, the neighbouring state to the north, New South Wales, closed its border to all Victorians – the first border closure between these two states in more than a century.

Other states either already had border restrictions in place and/or enhanced them against Victorian travellers – banning entry or, if an exemption applied, requiring them to either self-isolate for 14 days or quarantine on arrival in the other state. But the border closures were not without their problems. Border towns were thrown into chaos, and it affected people who commute from one state to another. The change left some healthcare workers unable to get to work, and even patients unable to see their healthcare providers. 2

One Australian state – Western Australia – took a particularly strong position on border closures. The Premier was clear that a hard border around the state would remain ‘as long as it [took] to protect people and keep our economy functioning within our borders'. 3 Tough penalties applied – and one woman who snuck across the border on a truck travelling from Victoria was even sentenced to six months in jail.

2.2.5. Leakage into the neighbouring state

Despite the border closure, New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, was unable to avoid being affected. Clusters linked to pubs and restaurants were traced back to Victoria, but authorities jumped on these quickly and traced down the cases, with the state bumping along at below 20 cases a day. Restrictions were progressively but not dramatically increased. This process of small, frequent increases to restrictions was the policy choice of the NSW state government.

2.2.6. It got worse before it got better

Meanwhile, despite the strict lockdown, widespread community transmission continued to rage on in Victoria for weeks – growing to over 700 new cases about four weeks after the Melbourne-wide lockdown began. Victoria faced a local case transmission rate about eight times higher than its peak during the first wave (excluding overseas arrivals in quarantine). It would take many weeks to bring cases down again, with the lockdown only ending after 112 days, at the end of October 2020.

Although COVID-19 case numbers did not leap high enough to threaten Victoria's health system capacity, it still had an impact. Of the 20,000 people infected during the second wave, nearly 20% were healthcare workers – most of whom had been infected in the workplace. Of these, about a third were nurses, and nearly half were aged-care workers.

2.2.7. The path to ‘COVID normal’

On 6 September, when daily cases were down to fewer than 100 a day, the Victorian Premier announced a ‘roadmap’ to reopening. The three-step roadmap to ‘COVID normal’ for Melbourne and regional Victoria was largely driven by case number thresholds (using 14-day averages), rather than dates. 4 With this, the government sought to find a middle ground between providing some certainty, while not allowing the hard work of lockdown to be undone. It wasn't good enough to merely bring cases down – the lockdown would only ease once there were fewer than five daily cases on a 14-day rolling average. Modelling showed that this threshold would significantly reduce the chance of a third or fourth wave.

This plan took a strategic approach to easing restrictions, keeping clamps on higher-risk settings. Large workplaces would remain closed for as long as possible, and households were not permitted any or only a few guests for months. The government instead steered the public to lower-risk outdoor settings. As spring and then summer kicked in, Melburnians flocked to parks to catch-up with friends and family not seen in months.

Gradually, Victoria met the case number thresholds, and restrictions were eased. Despite the detailed, and arguably overly complex roadmap, the government did not strictly comply with it – sometimes being more cautious than was initially planned, and sometimes less. Victorians became accustomed to the Premier, every few Sundays, making announcements about changes to the rules. TV networks broadcast his media conferences.

By the end of October, the Melbourne lockdown ended. Retail, cafes, and restaurants opened their doors. And by early November, Victoria not only recorded a few ‘doughnut days’, but many consecutive days.

2.3. 2021: Maintaining elimination and rolling out vaccinations

During the first half of 2021, Australia remained largely COVID-free. With barely any cases in the community, and only minor COVID restrictions in place, Australians could effectively go back to life as normal. Any risk of new cases came from quarantine, where international arrivals were required to undertake 14-days of hotel quarantine. But leaks inevitably happened – there were 14 breaches up 31 March 2021 – with these leaked cases managed through contact tracing or snap lockdowns – mostly lasting between a few days and two weeks. A larger outbreak starting in June 2021 required more extended lockdowns in both Melbourne and Sydney, made more difficult due to the virulence of the Delta strain.

The vaccine rollout was slow to start – it did not begin until February 2021, and was poorly implemented. Vaccinations were primarily to be administered through doctors at health clinics, with mass vaccination initially not part of the plan. The phasing prioritised frontline workers such as quarantine and health workers, and vulnerable populations, including aged care residents, and people with disability. A significant minority of Australians were vaccine hesitant throughout the first half of 2021, with about a quarter of Australians reporting that they were not likely to get vaccinated.

3. Part two: The ups and downs of Australia's response (2020–July 2021)

Australia's unique COVID-19 story has been defined by both luck and collective hard work, resulting in one of the few countries that was able to become largely COVID-free after a significant outbreak. 5

Australia was successful in turning an outbreak around from peaking at 700 cases in one day, to reducing it to zero four months later. 6

3.1. What worked: A collective effort

Although Australia's response to COVID-19 has been far from perfect, there have been some key successes that carried the country through.

3.1.1. Border closures

Australia's first wave was repelled at the country's border. The overwhelming majority of new cases during the first wave were directly linked to overseas travel, with international sources accounting for nearly two-thirds of Australia's total infections at the time. The government's strict control measures on its border – to ban all non-citizens and non-resident travellers on 20 March and then requiring 14-day mandatory hotel quarantine for all international arrivals on 28 March, was a turning point. 7 Australians needed an exit-visa to leave the country. Because of the cap on arrivals, economy-class travel almost disappeared, leaving many Australians stranded overseas, unable to afford to return home.

Border closures in general have been an effective tool in Australia's COVID-19 response. Border restrictions between some Australian states appeared to keep most of Australia COVID-free during Victoria's second wave.

There was a constitutional challenge to the state-border closures but, as part of that case the court charged with determining the facts found that the ‘the border restrictions [had] been effective to a very substantial extent to reduce the probability of COVID-19 being imported into Western Australia from interstate’. 8 Australia's top court then held that the state-imposed border closures did not breach the constitution provision that ‘trade and intercourse between the states shall be absolutely free’. 9

3.1.2. Initial national cooperation

An important part of Australia's first wave was the formation of the national cabinet, comprising the Prime Minister and the leaders of each state government.

The states have primary responsibility for public hospitals, public health, and emergency management, including the imposition of lockdowns and social distancing restrictions. The national government has primary responsibility for income and business support programmes. The coordination of these responsibilities was crucial.

Cooperation between states and the national government – no matter where they sit on the political spectrum – helped get a nationally consistent response to the crisis partly by making decisions by consensus, but also partly by explicitly endorsing different options. In the early stages of the pandemic, the national cabinet helped individual states justify strong decisions, through this collective approach. During the first wave the national cabinet met weekly, and then later, monthly.

3.1.3. Evidence-based decision making

National cooperation was further enhanced by the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee, comprising the nation's chief medical officer and his state counterparts (generally called chief health officers). From the start of the crisis, this forum met daily for two hours and helped underpin Australia's policy decisions with public health expertise, particularly with regard to social distancing measures.

Evidence-based decision making was particularly crucial during the second wave, when cases were spreading out of control. The Victorian government's lockdown strategies were largely driven by modelling that informed decision makers about case thresholds that could reduce the risk of future resurgences. Rather than look at the immediate future, the government looked at a longer-term time horizon that would minimise the chance of third or fourth waves.

3.1.4. Public support

There was widespread public acceptance of social distancing measures, demonstrated by people's adherence to the rules.

And while there has been a loud minority of people, including some business leaders, expressing frustrations at the long and harsh rules imposed on Victorian during the second wave, most people were supportive. In August, at the height of Victoria's strict lockdown, a poll showed that Victorians overwhelmingly supported most restrictions, including mask wearing, the night-time curfew, and the 5 km limit on travel. 10

3.1.5. Public health infrastructure

Australia's universal health system means that if someone has symptoms, they can easily get tested for free. Australia has one of the highest testing rates in the world.

If people need to consult a medical practitioner, they can do so over the phone or via videoconference, as the national government responded by making ‘telehealth’ immediately available. A survey of more than 1000 doctors found 99% of practices offered ‘telehealth’ services, alongside 97% continuing to offer face-to-face consultations. 11

Although Australia's health system capacity has not been overwhelmed, steps were taken quite quickly to expand capacity if it was needed – with public hospitals suspending non-urgent elective surgeries and private hospitals being at the ready to help out.

In recognising the mental health toll of the pandemic and the lockdown, governments have significantly expanded their support for mental health programmes. 12 Although there has been a spike in calls to mental health hotlines, there has been no clearly identifiable increase in the suicide rate to date. 13

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also led responses to COVID-19. 14 Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations took a lead in communicating COVID-19 health issues, and land councils moved early to prepare communities. 15

3.1.6. Economic support for the vulnerable

On the economic front, Australia, like much of the world, entered into a recession. But a suite of significant economic support measures from state governments and (predominantly) the national government has been largely successful. In 2020 alone, recovery and support measures amounted to national government spending of $370 billion USD equivalent (25% of Australia's GDP), including $190 billion USD in direct economic support. 16

Most significantly, the conservative national government introduced a wage subsidy scheme. The scheme, designed to keep people on the payroll, paid workers via their employer a flat rate of USD equivalent of $550 per week – about 70% of the typical wage in Australia. It is estimated that this scheme reduced total job losses by at least 700,000. 17

The national government also temporarily doubled welfare benefits for the unemployed to $400 USD a week – with the unemployment rate expected to peak at nearly double the pre-crisis rate. Women and young people were the most likely groups to lose their jobs. The unemployment rate reached 7% in October 2020, but by May 2021, unemployment was lower than it was pre-pandemic. And after a bumpy year, aggregate Australian consumption was back to normal by November 2020.

3.1.7. Choosing the right strategy

While contested, the elimination strategy proved effective at reducing both health and economic costs. Once Australia had COVID cases down to near zero, cases could more easily be traced, without resulting in significant outbreaks.

Australia has had fewer COVID cases and deaths as a proportion of its population than most countries in the world, sitting behind New Zealand and Taiwan. While in August 2020 Victoria had similar case numbers to several other countries, including the UK, those other countries not only recorded many more deaths, but also went into much longer lockdowns.

And while the lockdowns had significant costs, Australia ultimately had more days free from restrictions than most other countries. This enabled better economic outcomes, with Australia having a shorter recession than most other countries. It has also proved politically attractive, with other state leaders that have maintained strict borders and low cases numbers, sustaining high levels of public support.

3.2. What didn't work: It has not all been smooth sailing

An Australian parliamentary inquiry found in its December 2020 report that ‘while Australia [had] avoided the worst of the potential health outcomes’, ‘more could have been done to prevent illness and this tragic loss of life’. 18

3.2.1. Mistakes and quarantine failures

About 2700 passengers from the Ruby Princess international cruise ship were allowed to disembark freely in Sydney on 19 March 2020, despite some showing COVID-19 symptoms. The ship became Australia's largest single source of infection during the first wave. A special commission of inquiry found that ‘in light of all the information the [decision-makers involved] had, the decision to assess the risk [of the passengers being potentially infected with COVID-19] as ‘low risk’ – meaning, in effect, ‘do nothing’ – is as inexplicable as it is unjustifiable. It was a serious mistake’. 19

Victoria's second wave can primarily be traced back to breaches in infection protocols in that state's hotel quarantine programme. 20 Victoria's reliance on private security guards rather than police or the defence force – used in other states – has been heavily criticised. A government-appointed inquiry is looking into the case. 21

Outbreaks in 2021 were also linked to leakages from hotel quarantine, leading to more localised lockdowns in different Australian cities where the leaks occurred, resulting in about one lockdown per month, on average. A June 2021 study found that for every 1000 COVID cases in quarantine, there were 5.8 cases that transmitted to people in the community. 22 While the numerous failures in hotel quarantine arrangements demonstrated the need for better purpose-built facilities, as was recommended by a national review in November 2020, very few steps had been taken to do so.

3.2.2. Lack of preparedness and adequate systems

Australia's pandemic response was slow to get started. Although Australia had faced epidemics in the recent past – most recently the H1N1 virus – its preparedness regimes were more geared towards a similar flu-like virus, with the measures such as the closure of international borders, not contemplated in the plan. A parliamentary inquiry into Australia's response to COVID-19 found that ‘the government did not have adequate plans in place either before, or during the pandemic’. 23

Australia was also too slow in some areas to prepare its health system for the prospect of the virus spreading rapidly. Australia struggled initially to meet the rising demand for PPE. Australia's stockpile of 12 million P2/N85 masks and nine million surgical masks was not sufficient, and neither had it stockpiled enough gowns, visors, and goggles to cope with the crisis. The parliamentary inquiry found that there had been warnings prior to the pandemic that the stockpile was inadequate, but that the government had failed to heed this.

In some cases, contact tracing was not sophisticated. A national contact tracing review, released in November 2020, found that in some jurisdictions, ‘interviews with contacts are recorded on paper before being entered into a database, causing delays and the potential for error’. 24 The Victorian government was still using a paper-based system to record confirmed cases and trace their contacts. 25 A Victorian Parliamentary review found that ‘the use of manual data entry processes at the beginning of the pandemic meant that the system for contact tracing and recording of testing was not fit to deal with any escalation of cases and led to significant errors’. 26 This was not helped by the failure of the Australian government's contact tracing app ‘COVIDSafe’ to provide more than a handful of identified contacts. 27

Most fatally, the national government – which has responsibility for aged care – did not have an adequate COVID-19 plan for aged care, 28 and did not rapidly develop one following the tragic outbreaks in residential care during the first wave. Similar outbreaks in aged care homes in Victoria during the second wave were not handled any better. A Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety did a special report on COVID-19, and found there was poor planning and leadership, with confused and inconsistent communication from aged care providers and government. 29 The report found that ‘all too often, providers, care recipients and their families, and health workers did not have an answer to the critical question: who is in charge?’ By the end of the second wave in October, there had been about 2000 COVID-19 cases and 680 deaths in residential aged care – mostly in Victoria – accounting for about 75 per cent of Australia's total death toll. This is higher than many comparable countries, where about half of all COVID-19 deaths have been in aged care homes. 30

3.3. Contested issues

3.3.1. setting the right strategy.

In early 2020, the lack of a clear, overarching national strategy for COVID-19 resulted in a reactive policy approach, featuring confusing messages. The Commonwealth and state governments had different positions on how best to manage COVID-19. Public discourse was heated, with debate between people who argued that lockdowns were too harmful and ‘herd immunity’ was Australia's only realistic option, and others who pushed for the effective ‘elimination’ of COVID-19 in Australia in the interests of longer-term health and economic benefits. 31

As cases rapidly rose in Victoria and restrictions were reimposed in July 2020, the Commonwealth government rejected calls for ‘elimination’. It condemned the length and severity of Victoria's lockdown, citing the economic cost. 32 The early harmony of the national cabinet gave way to fractious political bickering and sniping. But the Commonwealth's opposition eventually gave way to state leaders' ambition to keep their state COVID-free, with Australia effectively maintaining very low case number throughout the first half of 2021.

3.3.2. Transparency and data communication

Despite regular media briefings, the communication of COVID-19 case numbers has been fragmented. Each state has reported their case numbers differently. Victoria's limited data transparency (albeit improving later) suggested that there was no internal functioning information system that collected this data. 33 And despite this evidence-based approach, the rationale for some restrictions such as the curfew were not adequately explained. 34

The slow vaccine rollout has also been covered by a veil of secrecy. It took months into the vaccination programme for the government to publish any meaningful data on the vaccine doses to be allocated, and the rates of vaccinations. The Commonwealth also paid millions of dollars to private companies to help with the rollout – but exactly who has been paid how much and for what is shrouded in secrecy.

3.3.3. Racism/bias/ignorance

COVID-19 shines a light on the existing inequities in society. In Melbourne, it affected more people in lower socio-economic areas. To address this, the Victorian government introduced worker-support payments and test-isolation payments to eligible people to cover the period of isolation.

The Victorian government also took a particularly harsh approach to managing the virus in social housing. During the early phase of the second wave, cases linked to public housing towers resulted in the government putting 11 towers – home to thousands of people – into strict lockdown. These towers, some 20 to 30 storeys high, house many migrant communities, and in many cases, the accommodation is over-crowded. Residents received almost no warning, with police arriving within hours of the announcement to immediately enforce the new rules. Residents were not permitted to leave their apartments for five days – not even to go food shopping. An independent Ombudsman inquiry found that the lockdown ‘did not appear justified and reasonable in the circumstances, nor compatible with the right to humane treatment when deprived of liberty’. 35 A more compassionate and better coordinated response may have achieved the same results. 36

Australia's international border closures were also criticised as being potentially racist, firstly when they were introduced in early 2020, but more seriously when the Commonwealth banned Australian citizens returning from India in April/May 2021 – threatening five years imprisonment. While the government argued it was to manage the increased risk of the infectious Delta variant, such harsh measures imposed on its own citizens was unprecedented.

3.3.4. A slow vaccine rollout

Australia lagged behind comparable countries in its COVID vaccine rollout. By July 2021 – 5 months into its vaccine rollout – the proportion of people vaccinated put Australia last in the OECD. The main reason is that the Commonwealth government – which is responsible for the vaccination programme – botched its vaccine strategy, investing in a narrow range of vaccines, and failing to secure adequate supply. Of the four vaccines it ordered, only two were in use 5 months in, and one of them – AstraZeneca – was only recommended for people over 60 years.

The Commonwealth also failed to demonstrate the sense of urgency for population-wide vaccination, instead initially declaring the rollout was ‘not a race’ ( Figure 2 ).

In July 2021, Australia's vaccine rollout was lagging behind comparable countries. Percentage of population that have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, days since first reported vaccination numbers, July 2021.

3.4. Looking forward

Many Australians count themselves as lucky that the country has not been ravaged by COVID-19 to date. But the crisis has not been without its challenges. As with the experience in many places, COVID-19 has exposed both the vulnerabilities and strengths in our society. Despite the Australian community's collective effort during the pandemic, enormous risks and challenges still remain, with the scars likely to be evident for decades to come.

1 Duckett et al ., 2020

2 E.g., see: Davis and Burnie, 2020

3 Thompson, 2020

4 Coronavirus Victoria, 2020

5 Duckett and Crowley, 2020

6 Duckett and Crowley, 2020

7 Adekunle et al ., 2020

8 Palmer v State of Western Australia (No 4) [2020] FCA 1221

9 Palmer & Anor v The State of Western Australia & Anor [2020] HCATrans 180 (6 November 2020)

10 Roy, 2020

11 RACGP, 2020

12 Hunt, 2020

13 Coroners Court, 2020

14 Markham et al ., 2020

15 Finlay and Wenitong, 2020

16 Frydenberg, 2020

17 Bishop and Day, 2020

18 Senate Select Committee on COVID-19, 2020

19 NSW Government ( 2020 ), p. 32.

20 COVID-19 Hotel Quarantine Inquiry ( 2020 ), p. 9.

21 So far, it has only released an interim report on what Victoria's future hotel quarantine arrangements should look like: COVID-19 Hotel Quarantine Inquiry ( 2020 ).

22 Grout et al ., 2021

23 Senate Select Committee on COVID-19, 2020

24 National Contact Tracing Review Panel, 2020

25 This was probably made more difficult by the under-investment in public health and public health IT by both sides of politics for decades: Ilanbey and Baker, 2020

26 Parliament of Victoria Legislative Council 2020

27 Taylor, 2020

28 Senate Select Committee on COVID-19, 2020

29 Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, 2020

30 This is based on a June 2020 review of 26 countries including the UK and the US: Comas-Herrera et al ., 2020

31 Duckett, 2020a ; Duckett and Mackey, 2020

32 Prime Minister of Australia, 2020

33 Duckett, 2020b

34 Duckett, 2020c , 2020d

35 Victoria Ombudsman, 2020

36 Carrasco et al ., 2020

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Air travel in Australia is entering a 'new normal'. Here's what that means for flight prices

Are airfares in australia likely to go up or down, and with a new budget carrier and a new sydney airport on the horizon, are cheaper flights likely and will we ever have a high-speed train between our east coast capitals.

Aviation experts say air passengers in Australia should not get too excited about the prospect of cheap flights. Source: Getty / James D Morgan

• Qantas has posted a dip in profits due to reduced fares and a focus on customer service.
• Aviation experts say post-COVID-19 air travel in Australia has entered a "new normal".
• New budget carrier Koala Airlines has a tough road ahead to compete against the giants.

Qantas says $375 million in COVID-19 flight credits remain unclaimed

The 'new normal' of air travel in australia.

Airfare surge: These routes could face steeper prices after Rex's capital city exit

Hope of a third airline?

The amount of fuel you have to consume to get between point A and point B is the ultimate constraint of flying super cheap in Australia. Angus Kidman, Finder

What difference will Western Sydney Airport make?

How will the proposed compensation scheme impact airfares?

Will we ever have high-speed trains in australia.

Is it possible to get cheap flights in Australia?

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International travel has rebounded to close to pre-COVID levels as trips to Indonesia outpace New Zealand 'four to one'

I nternational travel has rebounded to pre-COVID levels for the first time since international travel restrictions were lifted, according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The numbers also showed Indonesia was the most popular travel destination for Australians with 1.5 million trips recorded in 2023-24, outpacing the increase in trips to New Zealand by "four to one".

International flights resumed in late 2021, with searches for flights and travel insurance still soaring in early 2023 .

Last year marked the first time Indonesia had come in as the top travel destination.

In June 2024 it was followed in popularity by New Zealand (77,760 trips),  the United Kingdom (65,090 trips) the United States (52,910) and Japan (51,156).

The United States was the only country in the top five where the number of trips proved lower than a decade ago, with a total of 714,300 trips, down from 970,230 trips in 2013-14.

The ABS' head of migration statistics, Martin Skeggs, said it had been a "continual recovery" over several years.

"The figures today [are not] especially surprising because we've been seeing this coming, but they have reached a point now where for residents, we're hitting levels that we saw prior to the pandemic," he said. 

"We're already seeing visitors from some countries levelling off a little bit.

"But if we look prior to the pandemic, we saw that the number of Australians going overseas and the number of visitors coming here was ever increasing.

"So there is the possibility that those levels may continue to increase over time." 

There were 863,950 short term trips in June 2024, "an increase of 134,410 compared to [June 2023]", according to the ABS.

The number of trips was 2.6 per cent higher than the pre-COVID figure in June 2019.

The ABS' head of migration statistics, Jenny Dobak, said: "The number of residents returning from short-term trips in 2023-24 was 32 per cent higher than 2022-23, and reached 98 per cent (pre-COVID) volume.

"The number of resident returns each month reached 100 per cent of the pre-COVID (2019) volume in January 2024, for the first time since international travel restrictions were lifted.

"It has been above 100 per cent of pre-COVID volumes in the following months, with the exception of May 2024."

Most visitors from New Zealand, China, India

The number of short-term visitors to Australia in June 2024 increased by 8.4 per cent on the previous year, with 587,760 arrivals.

The number of arrivals has reached 85 per cent of the pre-COVID 2018-19 level and increased in all states and territories over the year.

Ms Dobak said China had "made a notable movement in the top five countries that short-term visitors arrived from, becoming the second-most popular country for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic".

"India was the fifth-most popular destination, however it was the only country in the top five to surpass its pre-COVID level," she said.

The majority of short-term visitors in June 2024 were from New Zealand (103,850), followed by China (55,670), the United States (52,460), Singapore (50,610) and India (39,550).

Most visitors were travelling to New South Wales and Victoria.

However, the number of international students arriving in June 2024 decreased by 11,390 students compared to the previous year, with 39, 230 arriving.

This was also 14.8 per cent lower than pre-COVID levels (June 2019).

Mr Skeggs said it had been difficult to predict how long it would take for travel numbers to recover following COVID-19 restrictions. 

"It's difficult to say at the best of times," he said.

"It's not unexpected that it took some time for the industry to recover. 

"It was very, very uncertain as to what would happen a couple of years ago when the borders reopened, in terms of how long it would take." 

Ukraine war latest: Zelenskyy sacks air force chief; girl among six killed in Russian bomb attack that hit Kharkiv playground

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has dismissed the country's air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk after claims an F-16 pilot was killed by friendly fire. Six people have died, including a 14-year-old girl on a playground, in a Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv, officials say.

Friday 30 August 2024 21:50, UK

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• Zelenskyy sacks Ukraine's air force commander
• Decision comes after MP claimed F-16 pilot was killed by friendly fire
• Girl among six killed with dozens injured in strike on Kharkiv
• Russia accused of war crimes over guided bomb attack that hit playground
• Women killed in strike on Sumy region that hit baby food packaging factory
• Putin to visit International Criminal Court member Mongolia
• Analysis: Why Putin's arrest in Mongolia is unlikely
• Battlefield situation: Latest frontlines in maps
• Watch: Who are Ukraine's secret resistance?
• Your questions answered: Strategic consequences for Ukraine if Pokrovsk falls
• Reporting by Bhvishya Patel , and earlier by  Mark Wyatt

We'll be back with more updates and analysis soon, but before we go, here's a recap of the key developments that took place today:

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sacked Ukraine's air force commander, days after a pilot died when an F-16 jet crashed
• Six people have died and at least 55 others hurt following a Russian guided bomb attack on the city of Kharkiv;
• Two women died and 11 people were injured by an attack which struck a factory in Sumy that manufactures packaging for baby food, juices and household products;
• The Kremlin announced that Vladimir Putin plans to visit Mongolia - a member of the International Criminal Court which has an issued an arrest warrant for him;
• The Ukrainian pilot killed when his F-16 fighter jet crashed on Monday was shot down by Ukraine's own anti-aircraft missile system, an MP has claimed;
• Mr Zelenskyy said today's attack on Kharkiv could have been avoided if Ukraine had permission to strike Russian military targets with Western weapons;
• The EU rebuffed a request from Kyiv for the bloc to train Ukrainian soldiers inside the war-torn country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed the country's air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk.

The sacking was announced on Friday in a presidential decree. 

There was no immediate explanation from Mr Zelenskyy for his decision but it comes days after a Ukrainian pilot was killed when his F-16 jet crashed on Monday.

Lieutenant Colonel Oleksiy Mes was killed while defending Ukraine's skies in a Western-donated warplane.

Ukrainian MP Mariana Bezuhla has claimed the jet was shot down by the country's own anti-aircraft missile system.

In response to Ms Bezuhla before his sacking, Lieutenant General Oleshchuk said her comments were a "tool to discredit the top military leadership".

"Mariana, the time will come when you will apologise to the entire army for what you have done, I hope in court!", he added.

Six people are now known to have died following the Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv, local authorities have said.

Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov said one child was killed in a playground and three people were killed in a 12-storey apartment block that caught fire as a result of the strike.

The Ukrainian authorities did not give the circumstances in which the two other people died in the strikes, which hit four areas of the city. 

As well as those people who died, at least 55 others were injured, officials said. 

About 20 of the injured were in severe condition, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.

Top Ukrainian officials have begun a visit to Washington, the Ukrainian presidential office has said. 

The delegation includes economy minister Yulia Svyrydenko and defence minister Rustem Umerov.

"We are working in Washington... We are grateful to our partners for their support," the president's chief of staff Andriy Yermak said on Telegram .

The visit comes amid Volodymyr Zelenskyy's renewed a call on Western allies to allow Ukraine to use long-range Western weapons to attack Russian military air bases.

Kyiv says that the most effective way to counter Russian strikes is to target Russian planes, not the bombs themselves.

The US ambassador to Ukraine has called on Russia to be "held accountable for these war crimes" in Kharkiv. 

In a statement on X, Bridget A Brink said "Russia struck an apartment building in Kharkiv with a guided aerial bomb, killing several and injuring many, including children".

Kharkiv has been the focus of heavy Russian bombing throughout the war, although there had been a drop in intensity in recent weeks, possibly related to a surprise invasion launched by Ukrainian forces into Russia's Kursk region.

Ukrainian authorities said today's attack involved five aerial guided bombs launched from planes in Russia's Belgorod region, also known as "glide bombs" which are fitted with a navigation system taking them to their targets.

The footage below shows the aftermath of the attack in Kharkiv.

The EU has rebuffed a request from Kyiv for the bloc to train Ukrainian soldiers inside the war-torn country, but will train them as close as possible to Ukrainian territory, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has said. 

The EU has trained some 60,000 Ukrainian soldiers inside the economic union's borders since Russia's invasion of the country and will aim to train 15,000 more by the end of the year, Mr Borrell said.

Kyiv has asked the EU to consider some training inside Ukraine, arguing this would be faster, more cost-effective, and logistically easier than inside the EU.

But multiple EU countries are reluctant to deploy troops inside Ukraine, expressing concerns about their safety and questioning whether such a move would divert Ukrainian forces from their core mission, in order to protect trainers.

Mr Borrell told reporters: "Some member states were ready, others reluctant.

"Finally, we decided that the training will be as close as possible to Ukraine, but not in Ukrainian territory."

Ukraine has urged Mongolia to arrest Vladimir Putin on an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant when he visits next week.

The court issued an arrest warrant in March of last year against Mr Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. 

The Kremlin has dismissed the accusation, saying it is politically motivated.

The warrant obliges the court's 124 member states, including Mongolia, to arrest Mr Putin and transfer him to The Hague for trial if he sets foot on their territory. 

Now, the Ukrainian foreign ministry has called on the ICC to arrest the Russian leader when he visits Mongolia on 3 September. 

"We call on the Mongolian authorities to comply with the mandatory international arrest warrant and transfer Putin to the International Criminal Court in the Hague," the ministry said on Telegram.

Asked earlier today whether Moscow was concerned that Mongolia was a member of the ICC, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: "No, no worries about this. We have a great dialogue with our friends from Mongolia."

Asked whether there had been discussions with Mongolian authorities about the ICC warrant, Mr Peskov added: "Obviously the visit, all of the aspects of the visit have been thoroughly discussed."

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he held a meeting with the top military commanders of Ukraine this afternoon.

The president said that three key issues were discussed, starting with the situation on the frontlines.

Kursk invasion

Ukraine's top commander says Kyiv's forces have advanced up to 2km in their invasion of Russia's Kursk region.

Oleksandr Syrskyi briefed Mr Zelenskyy via video link and said Ukrainian forces took control of 5sq km of Russian territory. 

Discussions were also had over the next set of reinforcements in the area, which Mr Zelenskyy said was "extremely important for strengthening our positions".

General Syrskyi also briefed the president on the ongoing fighting near Pokrovsk, which Ukraine is trying desperately to hold in the face of advancing Russian troops.

Preparing for new academic year

The meeting also covered how Ukraine will deal with the new academic year for schoolchildren, which starts next week.

Mr Zelenskyy heard reports from Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, internal affairs minister Ihor Klymenko and education and science minister Oksen Lisovyi.

The president said discussions covered security issues, as well as the construction of bomb shelters.

Energy problems

The third key issue addressed was the current state of Ukraine's energy grid following a week of heavy Russian strikes.

Mr Zelenskyy heard analysis of energy issues, including the potential construction of protective structures around key energy infrastructure.

Images are emerging of the aftermath of today's attack on Kharkiv.

Russia denies deliberately targeting civilians, but thousands have been killed and wounded in its strikes during its invasion.

The scenes come as Volodymyr Zelenskyy renews a call on Western allies to allow long-range attacks on Russian military air bases after the attack.

The number of people killed in a Russian strike on Kharkiv has risen to five.

Meanwhile, 40 people have been injured after the Russian missile hit a residential building and playground, according to the regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.

Earlier, we reported that a 14-year-old girl was among the dead.

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