Trump Says U.S.-Canadian Border Will Be Temporarily Closed to ‘Non-Essential Traffic’

The U.S.-Canada border will be closed to "non-essential traffic," Donald Trump confirmed. 

US/Canada border
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Image via Getty/Christopher Morris/Corbis

US/Canada border

The U.S.-Canadian border will be closed to "non-essential traffic," President Donald Trump has confirmed. 

The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has resulted in closures and quarantines across North America, as Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau has urged Canadian citizens currently abroad to come home. "We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing our Nothern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic," Trump tweeted. "Trade will not be affected. Details to follow!" 

The news comes one day after the European Union closed its external borders to non-citizens on account of the pandemic. On Monday, Trudeau said he will close the Canadian border to foreigners, but American citizens were to be allowed entry at the time.

The Canadian Border Services Agency has warned those returning to Canada to self-isolate for two weeks following their arrival.

"Nearly 200,000 people cross that border every day and that border and that traffic that goes across that border is literally a lifeline for both the Canadians and the Americans on both sides of that border," said Canadian deputy prime minister Chrystia Freedland on Tuesday. "We get our groceries thanks to truckers who drive back and forth across that border. Very urgently needed medical supplies and medicines go back and forth across that border." 

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