WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is urging European countries to mirror U.S. travel restrictions implemented in response to Ebola as the U.S. prepares to host the largest-ever World Cup amid growing concerns about the spread of the disease, according to a State Department cable reviewed by NBC News.
As global health officials warn the Ebola outbreak is outpacing the international response, the U.S. warned European countries this week that a failure to adopt the administration’s precautions may have consequences, according to the cable issued on Monday. The State Department declined to provide further details on what actions the U.S. might take.
The U.S. is also speaking with countries in the Middle East about their measures to prevent Ebola’s spread, according to a U.S. official.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed that diplomatic officials are in touch with a number of countries around the world “to coordinate our approach to protect our citizens, including the millions of visitors, fans, athletes and tourists expected during the FIFA World Cup.”
“The Trump administration is protecting our nation and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public health,” the spokesperson said, adding that “we do not comment on private diplomatic conversations.”
The Ebola outbreak in central Africa has complicated the already herculean task of preparing for a sprawling global event like the World Cup. Beginning on June 11, teams from 48 countries will be competing across the U.S., Canada and Mexico. FIFA has sold more than 6 million tickets to fans traveling from across the world. The teams and the fans will also be working their way through North America to attend matches in 16 cities — 11 in the U.S. alone — and the competition will last until the final match in New Jersey, outside of New York City.
“It’s an enormous challenge,” Susan Reichle, a former USAID counselor and former head of the agency’s Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance Bureau, told NBC News. “It really takes constructive engagement and a lot of planning.”
The U.S. official said there are no plans to ban European Union citizens from traveling to the U.S. for the World Cup, while pointing out that European countries have many flight interconnections with the U.S. and “if countries experience cases, we will obviously enact measures to protect Americans.”
In Monday’s cable, the State Department instructed U.S. diplomats in European capitals to speak with foreign officials at the “highest appropriate level” to request information on the precautionary measures taken around Ebola, according to the cable. The department also requested the U.S. diplomats share the countries’ responses to the directive as well as an identified point person for each country who could field follow-up questions from the administration.
The cable listed proposed talking points for diplomats to use in their conversations with European officials, such as: “Given the close travel links between Europe and the United States, we request that you adopt similar travel measures as ours to prevent the spread of the disease and ensure we do not have cases affect our countries.”
U.S. diplomats were told to ask European countries to specifically implement the same travel restrictions as the U.S. and to warn that “failure to adopt similar travel measures may require the United States to adopt unilateral measures,” according to the cable.
Under a 30-day order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. has suspended the entry of foreign nationals who were present or transited through the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan or Uganda within 21 days of their planned arrival in the U.S. The State Department also paused the issuance of new visas for foreign nationals meeting the same criteria.
Congo qualified for the World Cup, and its team is based in Houston.
In comparison to recent outbreaks, the world is behind in preventing the spread of the severe Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which has no known treatment or vaccine. Along with the U.S. withdrawal from the World Health Organization and its shuttering of USAID, global health experts say, cuts to U.S. funding for disease surveillance networks on the ground contributed to the delayed detection and slow contact tracing that hampered the international response.
As of Wednesday, the WHO said there were an estimated 344 confirmed cases of Ebola, including 60 deaths, in Congo and 15 confirmed cases in neighboring Uganda and one death.
The State Department said Friday that it has spent more than $200 million in its response to the outbreak, which has involved contact tracing, border and point-of-entry screening, assisting at dozens of health clinics in affected areas, and community education to combat misinformation about how Ebola spreads.
The Trump administration has also undertaken a series of efforts to prevent the disease from reaching U.S. shores including erecting a quarantine center for exposed Americans in Kenya, an enhanced health screening center at four American airports for travelers coming from the affected countries and a series of travel restrictions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier this week that Americans who test positive for Ebola would be brought to the nearest treatment facility either in Europe or the U.S.