New Delhi: Donald Trump may impose new travel bans on 43 countries, including Russia and Pakistan. Such a ban would fully or partially restrict citizens of these countries from entering the US. We have categorised the countries into three groups: the red list, the orange list, and the red list.
Remember, there hasn’t been an official order yet. Nevertheless, agencies such as The New York Times (NYT) and Reuters have confirmed the details based on the information provided by officials. On the other hand, reports suggest that the country will bar its citizens from entering in any manner.
Selective travel restrictions will apply to countries on the Orange List. Countries on the Yellow List have also been ordered to fix “security-related deficiencies” within 60 days. Failure to comply will escalate the likelihood of placing those countries on the more severe lists (red or orange).
The centrepiece of the proposed plan was a red list of 11 nations. According to NYT, the countries are Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen, citing officials.
These countries are predominantly Muslim. It comes as an expansion of the travel restrictions he attempted to impose during his first term, when he issued a ban on seven Muslim-majority countries.
Orange List
The list also consists of countries such as Belarus, Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, Pakistan, Russia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Turkmenistan. The citizens of these 10 countries will go through strict scrutiny and an in-person visa interview process.
While some wealthy business travellers from these nations might still be allowed inside the borders, holders of immigrant and tourist visas will face strict scrutiny. Indeed, this list includes Russia, despite recent reports suggesting Trump’s closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Yellow List
Under the Yellow List are Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Vanuatu, and Zimbabwe.
The Trump administration argues that these nations either do not provide enough information about travellers to the United States or have weak security practices when issuing passports. This allows individuals from these restricted nations to circumvent the process.
Based on information from the State Department, Homeland Security, and other intelligence agencies, Reuters and the NYT said officials were not looking at the final list as ‘subject to debate.’