Most travelers from the United States will be banned from entering the European Union, which reopens its borders tomorrow, July 1. The policy is due to the fact that the COVID-19 is still very widespread in the United States, according to European officials. The 27 EU members have drawn up a list of countries where the virus is considered to be at low enough levels that people from them will therefore be allowed to travel to the bloc, which has been largely closed since March. The list of the “safest” countries was officially presented by European officials on Tuesday. The United States, which has the most cases and the most deaths from COVID-19 so far, is not included.
The 15 countries included in the list are as follows:
- Australia
- Canada
- Agriculture
- Montenegro
- Morocco
- New Zealand
- Rwanda
- Serbia
- South Korea
- Thailand
- Tunisia
- Uruguay
- Japan
- Algeria
China is also expected to be added to the list , provided that it also allows EU travelers to enter its country.
This policy proves that the US is viewed by Europe , and by countries outside it, as a global hotbed and "threat" for the spread of COVID-19.
Both the EU and the US reported cases of the virus in late March and early April. But while strict lockdown have seen those numbers fall across Europe, the US has seen recent surges in states such as Florida and Texas, as President Donald Trumphas encouraged society to reopen and return to “normalcy.” More than 125,000 people in the US have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
In March, when Europe was at the epicenter of the global pandemic, Trump announced travel restrictions. However, the EU clarified that this list is not a kind of political vendetta and retaliation against Trump, but is based on epidemiological criteria. According to a European update published last week, the US had 107 cases per 100,000 people in the previous 14 days, while the average across the EU was 16 cases per 100,000 people. For any country not on the list, the restrictions on non-essential travel imposed in March still apply. These restrictions do not apply to EU citizens abroad, healthcare workers, people involved in the freight transport industry , diplomats and military personnel , as well as people traveling for serious family reasons.
