The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has announced that by “mutual agreement” the border with Canada will remain closed to “non-essential traffic” to contain the expansion of the coronavirus, which now totals more than 6,500 infections on the US side.
“By mutual agreement, we will temporarily close our northern border with Canada to non-essential traffic. Trade will not be affected,” Trump reported on his Twitter account, where he anticipated that the details of the measure will be known in the next few hours.
The order had already been advanced by media in both countries, after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was reportedly reluctant to restrict border traffic with who is Canada’s main trading partner.
“Almost 200,000 people cross the border every day and that traffic is literally a lifeline for Canadians and Americans on both sides,” Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland warned Tuesday, referring to possible blockades, according to CBC.
