Coronavirus – USA: Expert teams will decide how to resume travel

Establish expert groups with Canada, Mexico, the European Union and the United Kingdom to decide on the most appropriate way to restart travel After 15 months of restrictions to deal with the spread of the pandemic, the Biden government is moving forward.

The news was made known on Tuesday (8/6) by a White House official. At the same time, another US official pointed out that their government USA will not move quickly to cancel orders barring citizens from most of the world from entering the US, due to the time required by working groups to complete their work.

The White House, for its part, briefed them Airlines and other tourism companies on the organization of the working groups mentioned above, according to the same official.

«Although we are not reopening tourism today, we hope that these expert working groups will help us use our collective experience to chart our way forward, with the aim of opening up international tourism to the most our important partners when it is decided that it is safe to do so“, The White House official said as broadcast by the Athens News Agency, noting that” any decisions will be made on the basis of objective analysis and the recommendations of experts in the field of health. “

The working groups are expected to be led by the White House COVID Task Force, as well as the US National Security Council, including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and other US agencies.

The CDC announced on Tuesday that it was easing travel restrictions for 110 countries and territories, including Canada, Mexico, Japan, South Africa and Iran, without lifting travel restrictions against COVID-19.

CDC Director Rosell Wallensky said the U.S. travel restrictions, which apply from 2020, “are being debated between different U.S. agencies as we look at real-time data on how we can move forward.”

The government Biden is facing pressure from some members of Congress who argue that American communities along the border with Canada are having financial difficulties due to land border restrictions.

Airlines and other companies are pushing the US government to lift the restrictions.

The American Airlines Association, which represents American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and other airlines, has commented positively on the working groups, but the same association believes that “these working groups should act quickly to implement a science-backed policy, allowing fully vaccinated travelers to travel to the US. “Speed ​​is the key here. “We believe that science exists for this reason,” the union said.

United Airlines said it was encouraged by the White House move to prioritize a plan to launch air traffic in international markets and called for speeding up procedures, given the increased passenger traffic in the summer. “Now is the time to implement a strategy of opening up the airline sector for the good of the economy, but also of travelers,” the union said.

You may also like