Coronavirus: US immigration suspension to last 60 days, says Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) said that a temporary suspension of immigration into the United States will be in effect for 60 days, after which, the decision regarding any possible extension will be evaluated based on economic conditions of the country.

He said that he may sign the executive order to suspend immigration on Wednesday.

"I will be issuing a temporary suspension of immigration into the United States. This pause will be in effect for 60 days, after which they need for an extension or modification will be evaluated based on economic conditions at the time," Trump said at a daily briefing at the White House.

On Monday, Trump had announced that he will sign an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"In light of the attack from the invisible enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our great American citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!" Trump said on Twitter.

The order would mark an extraordinary use of executive power by Trump, who, just hours earlier, spoke about the ability of certain states to begin reopening their economies despite the threat of the virus, The Hill reported.

The suspension of all immigration would serve as an extension on the travel restrictions that the Trump administration has already imposed on most of Europe, China, Canada, Mexico, Iran and South Korea.

Trump has spent much of his presidency pushing to restrict immigration into the States. Last year, he also pushed for construction of a wall on the US-Mexico border, implemented policies that limited migrants from applying for asylum and overseen the separation of families who cross into the country illegally.

Meanwhile, Trump in the daily briefing on Tuesday also said that 20 states are preparing to reopen their economies soon amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Since we announced our guidelines on opening up America. 20 states representing 40 per cent of the US population have announced that they are making plans and preparations to safely restart their economies in the very near future," Trump said on Tuesday.

COVID-19 has infected more than 2.5 million people around the world. The US has reported as many as 823,000, cases with at least 44000 fatalities, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

(ANI)

Also Read: Donald Trump wishes Kim Jong Un 'well' after reports of serious illness