Europe Restricts Visitors From the US Over CCP Virus

People are tested in their in vehicles in Phoenix's western neighborhood of Maryvale in Phoenix for free COVID-19 tests organized by Equality Health Foundation, which focuses on care in underserved communities, in Phoenix, Ariz., June 27, 2020. Matt York/AP Photo

The European continent on Tuesday has agreed to reopen to 14 countries, but the United States was not included in its mandate as cases of the CCP virus continue to rise, according to the European Council.

The council wrote that it “adopted a recommendation on the gradual lifting of the temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into” the European Union, adding that “travel restrictions should be lifted for countries listed in the recommendation, with this list being reviewed and, as the case may be, updated every two weeks.”

Travel restrictions should be lifted for Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, and Uruguay, according to a news release from the group. The restrictions should be lifted starting on July 1.

In addition, China could be included if it allows travelers from the EU.

The move is designed to curb the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged in mainland China last year. The CCP has been criticized by health experts for clamping down on information about the virus, while many have suggested that the official numbers released by the Chinese regime are not accurate and that the actual death toll inside China, a country with a population of 1.3 billion, is likely many times higher than officially reported.

EU citizens and their family members are exempt from the restrictions and can travel back to the bloc, while residents of Monaco, Andorra, Vatican City, and San Marino should be considered residents of the EU for the purpose of the recommendation. Schengen-associated countries such as Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland can partake.

Prime minister Giuseppe Conte wears a face mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 as he arrives to address parliament on the next European Council meeting, in Rome, Italy, on June 17, 2020. Mauro Scrobogna/LaPresse via AP

The United Kingdom was left off the European Council list. The UK left the EU in January 2020.

Russia, India, and Brazil were also left off the European Council’s list.

President Donald Trump in March suspended the entry of all people from the EU in a decree after cases in Italy and Spain started to rise.

“This is not an exercise to be nice or unfriendly to other countries, this is an exercise of self-responsibility,” Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya told Spain’s Cadena SER radio on Monday, according to reports.

French passengers step out of the tram at a station in Kehl, on June 15, 2020, on the reopening day of the borders between France and Germany, Patrick Hertzog/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. mission to the EU said that its officials “appreciate the transparency and concerted efforts of our European partners and allies to combat this pandemic, and we are committed to coordinating with them as we look forward to reopening our economies and easing restrictions,” reported Bloomberg News.

Reports have noted that Americans make up a large portion of the EU’s tourism industry, and more than 15 million Americans travel to Europe every year, while about 10 million Europeans travel to the United States.

While cases in the United States have risen in recent weeks as states ended lockdown measures, the death rate has dropped. About 332 COVID-19 deaths were reported on Monday, according to the COVID Tracking Project.