Ottawa:Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday the border between Canada and the United States isn't opening any time soon for nonessential travel.
Trudeau said it will still be a significant amount of time before Canada can loosen such a restriction.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday the border between Canada and the United States isn't opening any time soon for nonessential travel. The US and Canada agreed last month to limit border crossings to essential travel amid the pandemic, but that agreement is due to expire April 19.
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the US and Canada are doing well amid the pandemic and said the US Canada border will be among the first borders to open.
"It will be one of the early borders to be released," Trump said.
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Nearly 2,00,000 people cross that border every day in normal times. Canada sends 75% of its exports to the US and about 18% of American exports go to Canada.
Truck drivers and Canadians who live in the US for part of the year and are returning to Canada are among those who are exempted from the current travel ban.
Canada has more than 29,826 confirmed cases including 1,048 deaths. Almost half of the deaths are linked to nursing homes.
The coronavirus pandemic has been blamed for more than 1,28,000 deaths worldwide. The US has more confirmed cases and deaths from COVID-19 than any country in the world.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people, it can cause more severe illness including pneumonia and can be fatal.
(With inputs from AP)
