Pak, Af among 43 nations on Trump list of travel curbs

The Donald Trump administration is considering targeting the citizens of as many as 43 countries as part of a new ban on travel to the US.

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The New York Times reported that the Trump administration intends to bracket these countries in three categories. Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Iran are mentioned as countries that will be part of the restrictions.

A draft list of recommendations prepared by diplomatic and security officials suggests a “red list” of 11 countries whose citizens will be flatly barred from entering the US. These are Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.

This will be followed by the “orange list” in which visas will be “sharply restricted”.

The orange list comprises 10 countries from where travel will be heavily restricted. The citizens from these countries may still qualify for certain types of visa such as business travel, but will face mandatory in-person interviews. The countries are Belarus, Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, Pakistan, Russia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Turkmenistan.

US mulls 3 categories

The Trump administration intends to bracket these countries in three categories

Red list: Comprises 11 countries whose citizens will be flatly barred from entering the US

Orange list: Has 10 countries from where travel will be heavily restricted

Yellow list: Features 22 nations that will be given 60 days to rectify security concerns or risk being moved to a stricter category

The third is the “yellow list” with 22 countries that will be given 60 days to rectify security and information-sharing concerns or risk being moved to a stricter category.

These countries are Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Vanuatu and Zimbabwe.

Officials from the State Department, along with security specialists and intelligence agencies, are reportedly reviewing the draft list. They are evaluating the accuracy of the listed deficiencies and considering any diplomatic consequences of including certain countries. The proposal could be revised to accommodate international cooperation priorities, the US media reported.

During Trump’s first term, courts initially blocked early versions of travel bans, though the Supreme Court later upheld a revised version affecting eight nations.

Former President Joe Biden revoked Trump’s previous travel bans.