WASHINGTON / OTTAWA (Reuters) – The United States will extend to a 30-day ban on non-essential travel at land borders with Canada and Mexico as several states struggle to contain a coronavirus outbreak, a top U.S. official confirmed amtner freed.
FILE PHOTO: A Canadian maple leaf can be seen on The Peace Bridge, which runs between Canada and the United States, across the Niagara River in Buffalo, New York, US July 15, 2020. REUTERS / Brendan McDermid / File Photo
Acting Secretary of State for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Chad Wolf confirmed the action on Twitter. Reuters reported earlier Friday the planned expansion to the U.S.-Canada border.
“We continue to work with our Canadian and Mexican partners to slow down the spread of # COVID19. Therefore, we have agreed to extend the restriction of non-essential travel at our shared inland ports of entry by September 21, ”Wolf wrote.
The month-long ban – which does not cover trade or air travel – was first imposed in March and has been repeated several times as cases in the United States spike. The current range of restrictions runs on 21 Aug.
A U.S. official informed of the case said the measures could take several more months, depending on the progress of the coronavirus, which has killed more than 165,000 Americans.
The premiers of several major Canadian provinces say they want to keep American tourists until there is clear evidence that the outbreak of coronavirus south of the border is under control.
A July 17 poll by Ipsos-Reid said 85% of Canadians think the land border should remain closed until at least the end of 2020.
Last month, Canada tightened its rules for foreign travelers who have to transfer to get to Alaska, after several U.S. citizens were fined for making detours to sightseeing.
The United States and Mexico voted on a similar border block. Mexico has told the U.S. government that it supports extending restrictions for an additional month, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Thursday.
Mexico has recorded more than half a million official cases of coronavirus and 55,000 deaths, while Canada has had more success. The total number of Canadian cases is 121,234, with 9015 deaths.
Report by David Shepardson in Washington and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; and Additional Reporting by Ted Hesson in Washington and Anthony Esposito in Mexico City; Edited by Nick Zieminski
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