EU to remain closed to US travellers as borders open up

Americans will remain barred from entering the EU for nonessential travel even as the bloc starts to open up to as many as 15 countries from Wednesday, the EU said. Tuesday’s decision comes after days of wrangling between the bloc’s member states, which were divided over the economic benefits of opening up ahead of the summer tourist season amid concerns about a second wave of the coronavirus. With most European citizens banned from the US and the health situation there deteriorating, it had not appeared likely US citizens would be among the first group of people cleared to come to the bloc. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last week that officials on both sides of the Atlantic are discussing the situation and acknowledged that decisions about re-establishing international travel posed difficult challenges for all governments. Diplomats involved in the EU discussions said there was no real push within the bloc in recent days to make an exception for the US. The EU in mid-March imposed a travel ban on nonessential travel from outside the bloc as the region emerged as a center of the pandemic and many member states closed their borders. Most internal borders were lifted on June 15 and the bloc said it would start opening up to non-EU countries from Wednesday.<br/>