Washington: Donald Trump had banned travellers from seven majority-Muslim nations during his first term as US President, from 2017 to 2021.
This time, the restrictions are likely to be broader.
According to a draft accessed by Reuters, as many as 41 countries are likely to face a ban on travel to the United States as the Trump administration gets cracking on curbing illegal immigration.
Among the target countries in the list of recommendations by security officials are Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bhutan.
Pakistan and Bhutan have been included in a group of 26 countries that could face partial suspension of US visa issuance unless the Shehbaz Sharif-led government makes efforts to address ‘deficiencies’ within 60 days.
The Pakistani Foreign Ministry, however, said reports of a travel ban are ‘speculative’. According to Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan, Pakistan have not received any official intimation of such curbs.
The US draft has placed 10 countries on a ‘red list’, with their citizens to face a full visa suspension. They are Afghanistan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
Another group of five countries — Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar and South Sudan – has been identified whose citizens will face tourist, student and immigrant visa bans, with some caveats.
The full list
Full visa suspension – Afghanistan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen.
Partial visa suspension (tourist, student & some other visas affected) – Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, South Sudan.
Partially visa suspension if issues highlighted by US not fixed – Angola, Antigua & Barbuda, Belarus, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, East Timor, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu.
