Mexico to keep airports open after Trump travel restrictions

Mexico's government said on Thursday it was not planning to restrict international travel to the country or close its borders due to the coronavirus outbreak in spite of major curbs announced a day earlier by the United States.

Standing alongside President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said there was no scientific evidence that restricting access to ports of entry would play significant role in protecting public health. He added, however, that screening travelers at points of departure could help prevent the spread of the virus.

"Restricting international travel to Mexico is not planned, nor is it being considered. Nor is closing borders or maritime ports," Lopez-Gatell told a regular government news conference. On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping restrictions to prevent people from 26 European countries from traveling to the United States for a month as he responded to mounting pressure to take action against the coronavirus.

Lopez-Gatell said Mexico was in constant contact with officials in the United States and Canada to assess the impact of the virus outbreak, and that health ministers from the three countries would hold a teleconference next week.