“The situation on a global level remains very complex,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza told Italian news agency ANSA.
“We must not allow the sacrifices of Italians in recent months being made in vain.”
The countries whose citizens now have quarantine-free access to the EU (but not Italy) are: Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, New Zealand, Montenegro, Morocco, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay.
The EU said China could also be added to the list, but only if Beijing reciprocates by permitting entry to EU nationals.
Travellers from the US, Brazil, India and Russia are excluded from the list.
The so-called safe countries were chosen based on certain criteria, including on how well they are faring in handling the coronavirus pandemic, and the travel list will be updated every 14 days.
Border management will remain a matter of national competency, meaning that member states may decide not to reopen their borders to all 15 countries – such as the case of Italy.
Italy reopened its borders to travellers from the EU and Schengen area countries on June 3, and this will not change, Italian daily La Repubblica reported.
The Italian government has not given any indication of how long it expects the travel ban to remain in place.
Italy has been one of the worst-hit countries by COVID-19, with the official death toll standing at over 34,700.
