Trump's 'Ban on Entry from Europe' Measure... EU Criticizes as "Unilateral Action Without Prior Consultation"

On the 12th, when the KOSPI plunged intraday to the 1813 level, an employee in the dealing room of Hana Bank in Jung-gu, Seoul, was watching the live broadcast of U.S. President Trump's press conference on COVID-19. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The European Union (EU) criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s unilateral decision to ban entry from Europe in an effort to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and Charles Michel, President of the European Council, stated in a joint statement on the 12th (local time), "The EU points out that the U.S. decision to impose travel bans was made unilaterally without consultation." They added, "COVID-19 is not confined to any specific continent, and cooperation is needed rather than unilateral measures."

They also emphasized that the EU is taking strong measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Earlier, President Michel mentioned on Twitter, "We will assess the situation today following the travel ban announced by President Trump," adding, "Economic disruption must be prevented." He further stressed, "We will take all necessary measures to suppress the spread of infection and limit the number of cases."

On the 11th (local time), President Trump announced plans to strengthen entry restrictions on Europe, where COVID-19 is rapidly spreading, unlike South Korea and China. President Trump said, "All travel from Europe will be suspended for the next 30 days." He mentioned that the measure will take effect from midnight on the 13th. However, the United Kingdom was excluded from this measure. President Trump explained, "This is to prevent new (infection) cases from entering."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.