Three days before the inauguration of Joe Biden, the outgoing president has decided to reopen the American borders as of January 26. This announcement, Monday January 18, concerns European nationals of the Schengen area, the British, the Irish as well as the Brazilians.
The information was quickly contradicted by Jen Psaki, Joe Biden’s spokesperson. “Now is not the time to lift restrictions on international travel”, she said on her Twitter account.
“On the advice of our medical team, the [futur] government does not intend to lift these restrictions on January 26 ”Jen Psaki wrote on Twitter. “Besides”, she added, “We plan to strengthen public health measures applied to international travel to further combat the spread of Covid-19. “
A “travel ban” dating from March
Donald Trump’s decision is linked to the establishment, on the same date, of an obligation to present a negative screening test for the coronavirus upon entering the United States, the head of state reported in a press release. . In contrast, the outgoing US president has not lifted restrictions on non-US travelers from China or Iran.
Most foreign citizens who have visited Brazil, the United Kingdom, Ireland and the twenty-six countries of the Schengen area within the previous 14 days are not allowed to enter the United States.
This measure was introduced by Donald Trump last March for travelers from Europe, then in May for travelers from Brazil, faced with the risk of transmission of the coronavirus.
Airlines had said they hoped the screening requirement would lift restrictions on entry into the United States, which have caused flights from some European countries to drop by nearly 95% or more.
