EU to Remain Closed to U.S. Travelers as Borders Open Up - The Wall Street Journal

A man has his body temperature taken before boarding a plane at Paris-Orly Airport.
Photo: Niviere David/Zuma Press

Updated June 30, 2020 11:01 am ET

BRUSSELS—Americans will remain barred from entering the European Union 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.

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.

Citizens of Canada, New Zealand, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Georgia, Uruguay, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Serbia, Montenegro, Rwanda and Thailand will be allowed to enter the bloc. China will be added to the list if Beijing decides to allow EU citizens to travel there. Some European micro-states such as the Vatican, Andorra and Monaco are also included.

The decision could put trans-Atlantic relations under further strain. But given the recent surge in coronavirus infections in the U.S. and Washington’s travel ban on most EU citizens, it was expected. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last week that U.S. and EU officials were discussing the situation and that all countries recognized the current health situation was difficult to grapple with.

The EU’s reopening is aimed at boosting the bloc’s depressed tourism industry. Tourism is one of the EU’s biggest economic sectors, typically accounting for around 10% of economic output in the bloc.

Under the plan, member states would review the list every two weeks to decide which countries should stay on the list and if any should be added.

The wrangling over the decision went to within hours of Wednesday’s deadline. Several deadlines for countries to give their views passed, with Sweden asking its EU partners for extra time so that it could consult its parliament. In the end, it said yes to the plan, but several EU countries, including Poland, decided to abstain.

The big question now will be how uniformly the rules will be adopted across the bloc, especially given the fighting between capitals over the decision.