Trump’s New Proclamation on Banning Iranian Travel to America; North Korea Added to List

The U.S. President issued a new proclamation Sunday evening seeking to continue travel and visa restrictions for citizens of six predominantly Muslim countries, adding North Korea and Chad to the list. However, he removed Sudan from the visa ban list.

On Sunday evening, September 24, President Donald Trump announced in his statement that new restrictions have been implemented “following the non-cooperation of foreign governments.”

President Trump’s new executive order comes as a continuation of his efforts to ban travel for citizens of six predominantly Muslim countries, whose three-month period was set to expire, with the new executive order scheduled to take effect on October 18.

What are the new restrictions?

In President Trump’s new proclamation, entry of Iranian citizens with immigrant or non-immigrant visas will be revoked. This order was issued due to “Iran’s lack of cooperation” with the United States “in identifying security threats.”

However, the proclamation states that holders of student visas (F and M) and student exchange visas (J) from Iran are exempt from the restrictions.

The Supreme Court is expected to soon begin reviewing the executive order banning visa issuance for six predominantly Muslim countries, but prior to this, restrictions implemented for immediate family visas were revoked with amendments, and several civil rights lawsuits in U.S. federal courts have hindered full implementation of President Trump’s executive order.

The list of countries subject to restrictions has now expanded to eight countries: Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, North Korea, Yemen, and Chad. In the U.S. President’s announcement, restrictions have been imposed on government officials and their family members in Venezuela, which appears to be a continuation of the White House’s dissatisfaction with the suppression of opposition by the Maduro government.

President Trump’s Defense: America First

Concurrently with the new proclamation, President Trump wrote on Twitter: American security is my number one priority. We do not allow entry to America those whose backgrounds we cannot properly vet.

Since last February and the issuance of President Trump’s executive order, which faced opposition, the U.S. President says the travel ban for citizens of these countries is in line with ensuring security for Americans. According to the U.S. government, because governments of countries like Iran lack security cooperation with America, this is considered a threat to the United States.

Civil activists initially said that banning travel for citizens of countries such as Iran, Yemen, Syria, and Libya is effectively discrimination against Muslims, but the government rejected this accusation. In recent months, civil organizations in America have filed lawsuits against the government, arguing that broad and general bans result in hundreds of thousands of people who pose no threat to America and are present in the United States as students or workers.

The Trump administration is seeking to reform immigration laws and visa issuance to America.

Source: Voice of America