U.S. State Department Announces Major Expansion of Travel Ban Countries
Existing Warnings to Be Revised This Week
South Korea Currently at Level 2 'Enhanced Caution'
Many Level 3 'Reconsider Travel' Countries May Face Travel Bans
[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The U.S. Department of State has announced that it will issue a 'travel ban' advisory for 80% of countries worldwide to its citizens.
The State Department announced on the 19th (local time) that it will reflect this stance while revising travel alerts within this week.
The State Department stated, this change does not mean a reassessment of the current health situation in specific countries but is intended to reflect the existing epidemiological evaluation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The State Department explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has become an unprecedented risk for travelers, and it strongly recommends that U.S. citizens reconsider all overseas travel.
The State Department plans to decide based on the new evaluation reflecting each country's COVID-19 testing capacity and the level of travel restrictions for Americans.
As a result of this measure, many countries currently at Level 3 'Reconsider Travel' status are likely to be subject to Level 4 'Do Not Travel' advisories.
The countries currently designated as travel ban countries by the State Department include North Korea, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Botswana, Montenegro, Haiti, Brazil, South Sudan, Indonesia, Iraq, Russia, Syria, Cuba, Argentina, Venezuela, and others.
The State Department had downgraded the travel advisory for Korea from Level 3 'Reconsider Travel' to Level 2 'Exercise Increased Caution' in November last year.
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