US Extends Border Closures With Mexico, Canada

The borders between the United States and Mexico and Canada have been closed for at least another month due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

According to WWNYTV.com, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday the U.S.-Canadian border would remain closed to non-essential travel until at least February 21.

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The current travel restrictions have been in place since March, when the COVID-19 outbreak began in North America. The 30-day extension maintains the order set to expire on January 21.

As for the border between Mexico and the U.S., government officials have also asked to extend non-essential travel restrictions. The border closure was initially instituted on March 21 and is now scheduled to last through February 21.

“Due to the development of the spread of COVID-19 and because various states are in the orange (threat level),” the Mexican Foreign Ministry told Fox San Diego. “Mexico proposed to the United States the extension, for one more month, of the restrictions on non-essential land traffic at its common border.”

While the decisions to extend border closures have been met with understanding by most Americans due to the elevated number of confirmed coronavirus cases, Mexicans have complained that no one is stopping U.S. citizens from traveling south of the border.

The news comes hours after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced it would start requiring a negative COVID-19 test from all air passengers who are entering the U.S., beginning January 26.