US Embassy hopes travel advisory will be lifted
Published on: Saturday, May 07, 2016
Kota Kinabalu: A United States Embassy official said he was hopeful the travel advisory imposed by the US on travel to the East Coast of Sabah could be lifted soon so Americans can enjoy some of the world's best diving sites. US Embassy Public Affairs Counsellor, Frank Whitaker, on Friday said he would love to see the restrictions lifted when the East Coast becomes a safe place to visit. "We are hopeful the travel advisory can be lifted. We review that (advisory) regularly. We remain hopeful that Americans could one day travel in the East Coast," he said. ADVERTISEMENT United States is among several countries in Europe and Australia which have currently imposed a travel advisory on the East Coast of Sabah, discouraging its nationals from holiday-making in the region following kidnap-for-ransom and cross-border crime activities on the nearby Philippine-Malaysia waters. Whitaker said this during a press conference held by the embassy during the opening of the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) Fair, here. The US Embassy is participating in the fair to conduct briefings on the process of obtaining a US Visa during the fair. Whitaker also said both Malaysia and the United States are working hard to have an accord on visa waiver, adding the Malaysian Government is making huge strides in meeting the qualifications to introduce such facility. ADVERTISEMENT "We remain hopeful in the next few years we can get that approved and make it ultimately easier for Malaysians to travel to the US. I can't give you a deadline for that but we remain hopeful," he said. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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Whitaker's associate, Jessica Norris, meanwhile noted that they are trying to get more Malaysians to travel to the States, saying around 80,000 Malaysians visit the US each year.
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According to her, 97 per cent of the Malaysian visa applicants are issued with visas, which is now faster where the applicants could pick up their visa the next day upon approval.