While India has set records for Covid-19 deaths, concerns for the B.1.617.2 variable have spread globally

Sharon Peacock, director of the UK’s Covid-19 Genome Consortium, told reporters that the various measures, from travel bans to contact tracing, could buy some time. However, a fast-spreading variant such as B.1.617.2 would have a “biological passport for international travel and global outreach” – meaning international spread is likely, and possibly inevitable.