At a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Biden was asked about ending restrictions that bar most European visitors from entering the United States.
Biden said Thursday that a team that is advising him on the pandemic “brought that subject up. It’s in the process of (considering) how soon we can lift the ban … and I will be able to answer that question to you within the next several days.”
The comment by US President Joe Biden is encouraging airlines to hope that travel between the United States and Europe could be expanded in time for last-minute, late-summer vacation trips.
The rise and prevalence of COVID-19 variants in Europe, especially the delta mutation that is also spreading throughout the U.S., has caused the Biden administration to tread slowly about increasing transatlantic travel.
Last month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the administration was anxious to restore travel “as fully and quickly as possible,” but said he couldn’t put a date on reopening the country. “We have to be guided by the science, by medical expertise.”
Most of continental Europe has relaxed restrictions on Americans who are fully vaccinated, although the United Kingdom still requires quarantines for most visitors arriving from the U.S. Airlines say, however, that the lack of two-way travel is limiting the number of flights they can offer and seats they can sell.
In recent months, U.S. airlines have started new services to European countries that are open to American visitors. Delta launched new or resumed service to Greece, Iceland and Croatia, which opened early to vaccinated foreigners. In some cases, Americans who tested negative for the virus were able to skip quarantine requirements that were in place for other visitors.