Media reports more African nations face US visa prohibition

(MENAFN) The United States intends to widen its controversial travel restrictions to citizens from 36 additional countries, with 25 of them located in Africa, according to an internal State Department memo reported by The Washington Post over the weekend. This expansion follows a policy introduced earlier this month by President Donald Trump, who framed the restrictions as necessary to strengthen national security and prevent potential threats.

The proposed ban would cover a broad range of African nations, many of which have maintained strong diplomatic and economic ties with the US. West African countries on the draft list include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. Central African nations such as Cameroon, Gabon, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as the island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe, are also reportedly included. East African countries named include Djibouti, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda, alongside Southern African countries Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Mauritania in Northwest Africa and Egypt, a key US ally in North Africa, are on the list as well.

Outside Africa, the list includes countries like Antigua and Barbuda, Bhutan, Cambodia, Dominica, Kyrgyzstan, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Syria, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

The memo outlines several reasons for the proposed bans, citing some countries’ lack of effective government authorities to issue reliable identity and civil documents, widespread government fraud, and significant numbers of citizens overstaying visas in the US. According to the report, Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed the memo and sent it to US diplomats, giving the listed governments 60 days to meet new requirements and benchmarks.

Earlier, on June 4, President Trump issued an executive order restricting travel from 12 countries, including Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Libya, Somalia, and Sudan, citing terrorism risks, lack of cooperation on security, visa overstays, and refusal to accept deportees. In response, Chad suspended visa issuance to US citizens, while neighboring countries indicated they would engage in talks with Washington to address the concerns.

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