Ottawa, May 21 (RHC)-- Canada and the United States have agreed to extend a ban on non-essential travel between the two nations by another 30 days as part of the fight against the coronavirus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

Trudeau said the border is a source of vulnerability, so the agreement will be extended by another 30 days. The restrictions were announced on March 18 and were extended in April.

Trudeau said Canada's provincial leaders clearly wanted to continue the measures.  "This will keep people in both of our countries safe," he said.

U.S. officials have not officially confirmed Trudeau's announcement, but acting U.S. Department of Homeland Security chief Chad Wolf said on Tuesday the administration of President Donald Trump is "likely" to extend non-essential travel restrictions at both the Canadian and Mexican borders.

"We really have to see what is the health care situation like in Mexico and Canada, how are their cases, have they hit their curve?"  Wolf said at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event.  "What we don't want to do is try to open up parts of our economy and have a lot of folks coming across the border that we haven't seen in the past 50 or 60 days."

Trump has said that the U.S. and Canada are doing well in handling the pandemic, but many Canadians fear a reopening.  The U.S. has more confirmed cases and deaths from COVID-19 than any country in the world, although its per capita numbers are well below many other nations.

Essential cross-border workers like healthcare professionals, airline crews and truck drivers are still permitted to cross.  Truck drivers are critical as they move food and medical goods in both directions. Much of Canada's food supply comes from or via the United States.