The European Union’s top officials have sent public messages to wish the UK’s Boris Johnson, suffering from the coronavirus disease, after he was placed in an intensive care unit in London.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen on Monday wished Boris Johnson “a full recovery”.
“My thoughts are with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his family this evening. I wish him a speedy and full recovery,” she tweeted.
The EU’s Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier tweeted that “my thoughts are with you and your family.” Barnier is recovering in quarantine in his native France after announcing March 19 that he, too, had tested positive for the coronavirus.
“Wishing Boris Johnson all the best and a speedy recovery. My thoughts are with you and your family,” Barnier tweeted.
European Council President Charles Michel also expressed a similar sentiment.
“Get well soon, Boris,” Michel tweeted.
The wishes from two of the European Union’s top officials underlined the setting aside of political tussling that had characterised the pre-virus relations with Johnson.
Britain left the EU at the end of January this year as a result of its Brexit decision, but thorny negotiations are meant to continue for the rest of this year to define future ties.
Johnson has insisted those talks will not go on beyond the end of December, in line with a law his government has passed, even though a Brexit agreement between both sides allows an extension of up to two years.
Boris Johnson was moved to the St Thomas Hospital in London on Sunday night, 10 days after testing positive for coronavirus.
His condition worsened on Monday and he was moved to the intensive care unit as a precaution, Downing Street said on Monday evening, adding that he remains conscious.
Officials said the British prime minister is in ICU as a precaution should he require ventilation to aid his recovery.
