Trump Admin Eyes Expansion of Discriminatory Travel Ban to More Countries
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – US President Donald Trump’s administration is reportedly planning to broaden its already controversial travel restrictions by targeting citizens of 36 additional countries, in a move widely seen as part of Washington’s ongoing xenophobic crackdown.
An internal US State Department cable obtained by Reuters reveals that the Trump administration is considering a dramatic expansion of its travel ban list.
The cable, signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, outlines concerns about identity verification and cooperation with US deportation procedures among the targeted nations.
"The Department has identified 36 countries of concern that might be recommended for full or partial suspension of entry if they do not meet established benchmarks and requirements within 60 days," the memo stated.
This comes just weeks after Trump signed a proclamation barring entry from 12 countries under the pretext of protecting US national security from “foreign terrorists.”
Observers view the move as part of Trump’s hardline anti-immigration policy, which has intensified since the beginning of his second term.
In recent months, the administration has deported hundreds of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador under allegations of gang affiliations and has tightened restrictions on international students.
The internal cable, first reported by The Washington Post, criticizes some of the listed countries for allegedly failing to issue reliable identification documents and for not cooperating with US authorities on deportation matters.
It also cites “questionable security” of certain nations’ passports and claims that nationals of some countries have engaged in "anti-American or antisemitic" activity.
However, the document admits that these accusations do not apply uniformly across all the countries listed.
A senior State Department official defended the measure, stating, “We are constantly reevaluating policies to ensure the safety of Americans and that foreign nationals follow our laws.”
“The Department of State is committed to protecting our nation and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process,” the official added.
The 36 nations under review include a wide range of African, Asian, and small island states: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
This would drastically expand the existing travel ban, which already targets Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
Partial restrictions are currently in place for citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Trump’s discriminatory travel bans have faced widespread international criticism since his first term, when he imposed restrictions on several Muslim-majority countries — a measure that sparked global outrage before being upheld by the US Supreme Court in 2018.
