Los Angeles Times - 13.03.2020

LATIMES.COM FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2020A

THE WORLD

LONDON — President
Trump’s surprise order ban-
ning travel to the United
States from much of Europe
hammered financial mar-
kets on both sides of the At-
lantic on Thursday, opened
a stark new rift with Europe-
an allies and drew accusa-
tions that he was fanning
xenophobia rather than en-
gaging in a serious effort to
stem the spread of the co-
ronavirus.
European leaders ex-
pressed indignation and
bafflement over the sweep-
ing restrictions, saying they
were not consulted in ad-
vance about a directive
likely to carry broad econo-
mic repercussions. They
also chafed at Trump’s sug-
gestion that inadequate
containment efforts in Eu-
rope allowed travelers to
“seed” a U.S. outbreak.
In an Oval Office address
Wednesday night, the U.S.
leader announced that all
travel and movement of
cargo into the United States
from Europe, except from
Britain, would be halted —
though that statement was
quickly walked back.
U.S. officials said the re-
strictions would apply to
people, not goods — and not
to U.S. citizens and their im-
mediate family members.
The directive covers most
foreign citizens who had
been in Europe’s passport-
free travel zone — the so-
called Schengen area — at
any point in the 14 days be-
fore seeking to travel to the
United States.
Even in its diluted form,
the order appeared to be an-
other instance of Trump
catching allies unawares
with a major policy decision,
and markets plunged anew
in Europe and the United
States, intensifying fears of a
global recession linked to
the outbreak.
“The European Union
disapproves of the fact that
the U.S. decision to impose a
travel ban was taken unilat-
erally and without consulta-
tion,” European Council
President Charles Michel
and European Commission
President Ursula von der
Leyen said in a statement.
The leaders called the
spread of the coronavirus “a
global crisis, not limited to
any continent,” saying it “re-
quires cooperation rather
than unilateral action.” And
they took exception to
Trump’s characterization of
a lax European response,
saying the EU is “taking
strong action to limit the
spread of the virus.”
Some former diplomats
and analysts suggested that
the president’s announce-
ment was an attempt to
blame outsiders rather than
explaining how the U.S ad-
ministration intended to
combat the threat.
“Trump needed a narra-

tive to exonerate his admin-

istration from any responsi-

bility in the crisis,” Gerard

Araud, a former French am-

bassador to the United

States, wrote on Twitter.

“The foreigner is always a

good scapegoat.”

Some prominent Europe

watchers said Trump, who

frequently denigrates the

European Union, appeared

to be once again taking aim

at the bloc, although the

countries subject to restric-

tions do not precisely over-

lap with EU membership.

“This is not about con-

tainment, this is about send-

ing a political message,”

Benjamin Haddad, director

of the Future Europe Initia-

tive at the Atlantic Council,

wrote on Twitter. “In a time

when the EU is challenged to

its core, the U.S. is closing its

borders and turning its back

on allies.”

Particularly in the initial

confusion that followed

Trump’s address, travelers

were distressed. Jake

Ranieri and Tessa Reed,

both 20-year-old University

of Iowa students, were head-

ing home after their ex-

change program in San

Sebastian, Spain, was can-

celed.

Then, in the middle of

their night in Europe, came

word of Trump’s travel re-

strictions. Reed was asleep,

but awoke to “60 missed

calls,” which she called “the

scariest thing to wake up to.”

The two managed to get

tickets out and had only an

hour to say goodbye to their

host families. Waiting in line

at the airport in nearby Bil-

bao, both wore face masks.

“My eyes are puffy,” said

Reed. “I’ve been crying all

morning.”

Even some of the presi-

dent’s former aides have

been publicly critical of his

move, calling it a distraction

and a misdirection of re-

sources.

“There’s little value to

European travel restric-

tions,” Trump’s former

homeland security advisor

Tom Bossert wrote on Twit-

ter, calling the White House-

announced measures “poor

use of time & energy.”

Like others, Bossert said

such measures might have

had an impact early in

what the World Health Or-

ganization has now desig-

nated a pandemic, but will

have limited effect now be-

cause the virus is already

spreading within the United

States.

Trump’s stance won

praise, however, from the

head of the Centers for Dis-

ease Control and Preven-

tion, Robert Redfield. He

called Europe “the new

China,” a reference to the

novel virus’ origins.

Although several Euro-

pean countries fall outside

the travel measures, Trump

specifically stressed that the

restrictions would not in-

clude Britain, which has for-

mally withdrawn from the

EU but remains subject to

its rules and procedures

during a transition period

this year.

Trump has been an en-

thusiastic backer of Brexit,

Britain’s exit from the bloc.

He is also an ally of Prime

Minister Boris Johnson, al-

though the president’s un-

popularity in Britain some-

times causes the British

leader to seek distance from

Trump’s pronouncements.

Speaking to reporters

Thursday at the White

House, Trump said Britain

deserved special stature be-

cause of its “very strong bor-

ders” and cited what he

called its low rate of infec-

tion.

But British officials have

reported a jump in new

cases and an uptick in

deaths. Johnson on Thurs-

day called the coronavirus

“the worst public health cri-

sis for a generation” and

warned compatriots that

“many more families are go-

ing to lose loved ones before

their time.”

Alexander Stubb, the for-

mer prime minister of Fin-

land, called the carve-out for

the United Kingdom —

which has more cases than

many of the countries tar-

geted — “nothing short of ir-

responsible.”

“Decisions should be

based on facts, not politics,”

he wrote on Twitter.

After Trump’s drawing of

a sharp distinction between

Britain and other European

nations, commentators

quickly pointed to the fact

that the president owns

three golf resorts in Britain

and in Ireland, which is also

exempt because it lies out-

side the Schengen area.

Johnson’s government

avoided direct criticism of

Trump, but senior officials

sent out to talk to the media

seemingly could not bring

themselves to praise the re-

strictions. The chancellor of

the exchequer, Rishi Sunak,

said in a BBC radio inter-

view that the British govern-

ment was “always guided by

the science as we make our

decisions here.”

“There isn’t evidence

that interventions like clos-

ing borders or travel bans

are going to have a material

effect on the spread of the in-

fection,” he said. Many ex-

perts instead have called for

steps to slow community

transmission, including

bans on large gatherings.

Some commentators

suggested that Trump’s fa-

voring of the United King-

dom, seemingly meant as a

boon to Johnson, could in

fact heighten Britain’s infec-

tion risk by turning it into a

prime route for travel to the

United States.

“Ironically, the an-

nouncement represents a

headache for the UK as its

transport officials try to

work out whether it will be-

come a transit hub for Euro-

peans seeking to reach the

US,” wrote Patrick Wintour,

diplomatic editor of Brit-

ain’s Guardian newspaper.

The Schengen area, to

which the U.S. restrictions

apply, is made up of 26 coun-

tries including EU members

France, Italy, German,

Greece, Austria and Bel-

gium, where the bloc has its

headquarters. But it also en-

compasses some non-EU

countries including Switzer-

land, Norway and Iceland.

The Trump administra-

tion, echoing a pattern

throughout the evolving cri-

sis, denied that misleading

or contradictory statements

from the president had

made matters worse. “I don’t

think there was confusion”

about the travel restrictions,

Vice President Mike Pence

told CNN on Thursday.

Trump, in his address,

said “all travel from Europe”

to the United States would

be banned for a 30-day pe-

riod beginning Friday, ex-

cept by Americans who had

undergone “appropriate

screenings” and those trav-

eling from Britain.

Homeland Security offi-

cial Ken Cuccinelli said after

Trump’s address that the re-

strictions do not apply to

“American citizens or legal

permanent residents or

their families.”

Bruno Bonnell, a mem-

ber of the French Parlia-

ment and a businessman,

blasted the Trump decision

as illogical.

“If the situation was not

that bad, I would consider it

as almost a joke,” Bonnell

said. In an interview on the

BBC’s “Today,” he also

pointed out that with exit

and entry points in Britain

or elsewhere, anyone want-

ing to could simply make use

of those.

“If I want to go to the U.S.

tomorrow, what should I

do?” he said. “I’m going to

take a train or flight to the

United Kingdom, and then

take a flight to New York.”

Special correspondent

Boyle reported from

London and Times staff

writer King from

Washington. Special

correspondent Meg

Bernhard in Bilbao

contributed to this

report.

U.S. travel ban opens new rift with Europe

Leaders on continent say Trump’s order won’t stem spread of virus and only stokes bias

By Christina Boyle
and Laura King

TRAVELERSat Barcelona’s airport on Thursday. Spain is among the 26 European countries affected by Pres-

ident Trump’s sweeping travel restrictions, which were issued without consultation with European leaders.

Emilio MorenattiAssociated Press

EUROPEAN Commission President Ursula von der

Leyen said the pandemic is “a global crisis” that “re-

quires cooperation rather than unilateral action.”

Thanassis StavrakisAssociated Press

‘In a time

when the EU is

challenged to its

core, the U.S. is

closing its borders

and turning its

back on allies.’

— Benjamin Haddad,

director of the

Future Europe Initiative

at the Atlantic Council

WASHINGTON — A sen-
ior Brazilian official who at-
tended weekend events with
President Trump in Florida
has tested positive for the
coronavirus, marking the
first time that someone
known to have the virus was
physically close to the presi-
dent.
Trump does not plan to
be tested or go into self-
quarantine, the White
House said.
Brazilian President Jair
Bolsonaro’s communica-
tions director, Fábio Wajn-
garten, tested positive just
days after traveling with
Bolsonaro to a meeting with
Trump and senior aides in
Florida. White House Press
Secretary Stephanie Gr-
isham said in a statement
Thursday that “exposures
from the case are being as-

sessed, which will dictate

next steps.”

“Both the president and

vice president had almost no

interactions with the indi-

vidual who tested positive

and do not require being

tested at this time,” Gr-

isham said.

Wajngarten joined Bol-

sonaro on a three-day trip to

the U.S. and on Saturday

was at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago

club, where he posted a

photo of himself posing be-

side Trump. A video from

the event also showed him

standing directly behind

both presidents as they ad-

dressed a crowd. Bolsonaro

and Wajngarten later at-

tended a birthday party for

Kimberly Guilfoyle, who is

dating the president’s son

Donald Trump Jr.

The meeting also in-

cluded Trump’s daughter

Ivanka Trump; son-in-law,

Jared Kushner; Trump’s

personal lawyer, Rudolph W.

Giuliani; Brazilian Foreign

Minister Ernesto Araujo;

and Bolsonaro’s son Ed-

uardo, who is a federal law-

maker. Vice President Mike

Pence went to Mar-a-Lago

that evening.

“We had dinner in Florida

at Mar-a-Lago with the en-

tire delegation,” Trump told

reporters Thursday in the

Oval Office. “I don’t know if

the press aide was there. But

we did nothing very unusu-

al.”

For most people, the new

coronavirus causes only

mild or moderate symp-

toms, such as fever and

cough. For some, especially

older adults and people with

existing health problems,

it can cause more severe

illness, including pneumo-

nia.

The vast majority of peo-

ple recover from the new

virus. According to the

World Health Organization,

people with mild illness re-

cover in about two weeks,

and those with more severe

illness may take three to six

weeks to recover. In main-

land China, where the virus

first exploded, more than

127,000 people have been di-

agnosed and more than

68,000 have recovered.

Wajngarten initially de-

nied a report on Wednesday

that he had been tested for

the virus, saying on his social

media account that his

health was fine. He is now in

self-quarantine at home.

A statement from Bol-

sonaro’s communications

office on Thursday said that

Wajngarten’s test results

have come back positive and

that the presidency is adopt-

ing preventive measures to

ensure Bolsonaro’s health.

The government also

communicated with U.S. au-

thorities so they can take

cautionary measures, the

statement said.

Two major newspapers

reported that Bolsonaro has

been tested for coronavirus,

with results expected Fri-

day, though Brazil’s presi-

dential press office didn’t

confirm when contacted by

the Associated Press.

Bolsonaro’s son con-

firmed his father has been

tested in a tweet and said he

isn’t showing symptoms.

Bolsonaro’s health has

been a focus since a 2018

stabbing on the campaign

trail. Since the assassina-

tion attempt, he has already

undergone four surgeries

with a fifth upcoming. In De-

cember, he was taken to a

hospital after slipping in the

bathroom of the presi-

dential residence and bang-

ing his head.

Grisham said that under

U.S. Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention

guidelines, “there is cur-

rently no indication to test

patients without symptoms,

and only people with pro-

longed close exposure to

confirmed positive cases

should self-quarantine.”

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.),

who met Bolsonaro in Mi-

ami, and Sen. Lindsey Gra-

ham (R-S.C.), who was at

Mar a Lago on Saturday,

said they will self-quaran-

tine.

Brazilian official who met Trump has coronavirus

He attended events

with many people in

Florida. President has

no plans to be tested.

BRAZILIANofficial Fábio Wajngarten, shown in

September, went to a meeting last week attended by

President Trump, his daughter Ivanka and others.

Sergio LimaAFP/Getty Images

associated press