Europe has firmly said "No" to Donald Trump's immigration and travel vetoes to Muslim citizens and refugees.

Less than 24 hours after dozens of refugees and immigrants were vetoed their entry into US territory by executive order of President Donald Trump,  the heads of government of leading European Union (EU) joined their voices against the US president and criticize one of his most controversial measures that rejects the entry to the country not only Libyans, Somalis, Sudanese, Iraqi, Iranian, Yemeni and Syrian, but also citizens who hold dual nationality, if one of them belongs to any country on the list. Germany and UK both have a significant population holding double nationalities belonging to the vetoed countries.

On Saturday, French president, François Holland urged to offer "a firm united response" against Trump and asked the US President for 'respect' to refugees and immigrants.  

On Sunday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the British premier, Theresa May, also criticized the  controversial measure taken by the president of the USA. "The fight against terrorism does not justify putting under suspicion generalized people of a confession or with a specific past," said Merkel's spokeswoman. The German leader also recalled the need to accommodate war refugees on humanitarian grounds, "an obligation that affects all States that signed the Geneva Convention," she added.

The British Government, for its part, said  "stigmatizing is wrong". After her meeting with Donald Trump last Friday in Philadelphia, UK prime minister Margaret May became the first international leader to be received by the new White House cabinet. The British prime minister has ordered her Foreign and Interior ministers to contact with their counterparts in the US government to convey their complaints to the president's decree that vetoes the entry into the United States of the people of seven Muslim countries. Ministers' talks, according to the BBC, will focus on protecting the rights of British nationals who may be affected by the measure.

As UK prepares for Brexit (abandoning the EU), Theresa May has marked as a priority a good relationship with the US. But as is demonstrated on Sunday, the president's controversial agenda threatens to force May to a delicate balance if he wants to continue counting on Trump's United States as his main ally on the road to his new place in the world. He insisted on calling the travel  ban a 'massive success'.

In Italy, Interior Minister Marco Minniti said the veto "is unacceptable and creates marginalization". Something similar to what Chamber of Deputies President Laura Boldroni, who said that Trump's actions "in addition to undermining the foundations of the international legal principle, will bring widespread chaos and fuel dangerous tensions."

In the Netherlands, prime minister Mark Rutte said in a statement : "We are aware of the possibility that potential terrorists can not abuse asylum procedures and the security services have an important task here. In this context, we deplore the ban on traveling [to the US] Citizens of seven Muslim countries and we reject it."

In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used Twitter to communicate a message in support for migrants and refugees: "Those who flee from Persecution, terror and war, Canadians welcome you whatever your religion. Diversity is our strength, "he rifled. Trudeau also reassured his neighbors by a communiqué collected by the BBC assuring them that Canadian citizens, even with dual nationality, are exempt from the veto of Washington.

Trump did not acknowledge the decision by a federal judge on Saturday night to partially block the executive order and a senior White House official said: “All stopped visas will remain stopped. All halted admissions will remain halted. All restricted travel will remain prohibited.”

As reported in The Guardian and El País (in Spanish).