WASHINGTON – The Trump administration is urging European countries to intensify their travel limitations for visitors arriving from African nations grappling with Ebola outbreaks. They have signaled that if these measures aren’t implemented, the U.S. might impose stricter travel policies for Europe, potentially impacting events like the World Cup.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The discussion revolved around the coordination between the U.S. and Europe in response to the Ebola crises in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, as confirmed by a State Department announcement.
The statement emphasized that the primary focus of the department is safeguarding Americans’ health and preventing the spread of Ebola to U.S. soil.
A more candid remark came from a State Department official who highlighted that the U.S. has already taken significant steps to address the outbreak and now expects other nations to enhance their efforts.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the official revealed that without decisive action, travel across the Atlantic might face constraints. The call to action is urgent, underscoring the necessity for increased funding and prudent travel restrictions from the affected regions.
The official said the U.S. wants to see action that includes financial contributions to combat the disease and “commonsense restrictions on travel from the affected area.”
The World Cup tournament opens Thursday in Mexico and unfolds over nearly six weeks, with the United States hosting most of the games.
The Trump administration has banned travelers who have been in one of the affected countries in the previous three weeks from entering the United States and is establishing quarantine procedures for affected American citizens returning home from those places.
There are relatively few direct flights between Africa and the United States per day but more than 300 direct daily flights between Europe and the United States.
The U.S. says it has contributed more than $200 million to efforts to end the outbreak in Congo and Uganda since it was first confirmed last month.
The European Union announced earlier Tuesday that it was boosting its Ebola response funding by 16.5 million euros ($19 million) on top of 15 million euros ($17.3 million) related to the outbreak that it contributed last month. The European Union delegation in Washington had no immediate response about Rubio’s call with von der Leyen.
Democrats assailed Rubio during congressional hearings last week about the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the impact that may have had on the Ebola response. Rubio insisted that early detection programs have been rolled into health deals struck with African countries and that the U.S. “response has been very quick.”
