WASHINGTON, United States (AP) — On Monday, President Joe Biden called the new coronavirus variant omicron, a cause for concern but “not a cause for panic” and said he was not considering any widespread US lockdown.

Speaking at the White House, Biden said it was inevitable that the new variant would reach the US, but he also said the country has the tools necessary to protect Americans — particularly the approved vaccines and booster shots.

The White House said there were no plans to curtail Biden’s travel as a result of the new variant.

When omicron arrives, and it will, Biden said, America will “face this new threat just as we’ve faced those that have come before it.”

He appealed to the roughly 80 million unvaccinated Americans aged 5 and up to get their shots, and for the rest of the country to seek out booster shots six months after their second dose. He also encouraged everyone to get back to wearing face masks in all indoor public settings — a pandemic precaution that has fallen out of use across much of the country.

Biden was joined by Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert and the president’s COVID-19 adviser, who said earlier Monday that scientists hope to know in the next week or two how well the existing COVID-19 vaccines protect against the variant, and how dangerous it is compared to earlier strains.

“We really don’t know,” Fauci told ABC’s “Good Morning America,” calling speculation premature.

The new variant poses the latest test to Biden’s efforts to contain the pandemic, mitigate its impacts on the economy and return a sense of normalcy to the US during the holiday season.

Biden last week moved to restrict travel from South Africa and seven other countries in southern Africa, effective Monday, in a bid to give scientists time to learn more about the new variant, and for more Americans to get vaccinated before it hits the US.

Some other nations are reinstating severe travel and business lockdowns to prevent the omicron variant from spreading, but Biden indicated the US was not following suit.

“If people are vaccinated and wear their mask, there’s no need for lockdowns,” he said.