US does not intend to remove travel restrictions for those arriving from the EU or the Schengen area
The White House has stated that the United States does not intend to remove entry restrictions for travelers arriving from European Union and Schengen countries, at least for now, an announcement made by the US Secretary of State on June 25, Anthony J. Blinken.
Commenting on the ban on entry into the United States, a ban imposed on citizens of EU Member States, the Secretary of State said that removing the restrictions would be premature and, as such, the US will maintain travel bans, at least for now.
The United States does not intend to remove travel restrictions for those arriving from the EU or the Schengen area, at least for the time being.
The Council of the European Union recommended that Member States reopen the borders for US travelers, both vaccinated and unvaccinated, on 18 June. The recommendation was followed by concrete action by several countries, including Germany, France, Switzerland and Denmark, which decided to allow US travelers to enter their home country for non-essential purposes.
Only this week, the EU's chief diplomat in Washington, Stravos Lambridindinis, called on the US to end travel restrictions for European passport holders.
Airlines for America, a group in the airline industry, also criticized the US for not taking any action to end the travel ban for EU citizens. Katherine Estep, a spokeswoman for Airlines for America, said the group continues to call on the U.S. government to adopt a science-backed mutual policy that allows travelers who are fully vaccinated or who have tested negative for COVID-19 to travel to US.
According to Our World in Data figures, the US has so far vaccinated a total of 151.252.034 people, while 178.491.147 have received at least the first dose, which is more than 50% of the country's population. On the other hand, 57.9% of adults who are citizens or residents of an EU or EEA member country have received at least one dose of vaccine, while 34.9% of them have been fully vaccinated, according to the European Center for Disease and Control.