The Trump administration announced a “significant expansion” of its visa restriction policy throughout the Western Hemisphere, going after those “working on behalf of U.S. adversaries to undermine our national interests in our hemisphere including regional security and democratic sovereignty.”
“President Trump’s National Security Strategy makes clear: this Administration will deny adversarial powers the ability to own or control vital assets or threaten the security and prosperity of the United States in our region,” the State Department said in a press release. “The Department of State is working to advance American leadership in our hemisphere, protect our homeland, and ensure access to vital routes and areas throughout our region.”
“In support of this critical objective, the Department of State is announcing a significant expansion of an existing visa restriction policy that targets those working on behalf of U.S. adversaries to undermine our national interests in our hemisphere, including regional security and democratic sovereignty,” the department continued. “This expanded policy enables us to restrict U.S. visas for nationals of countries in our region who, while within Western Hemisphere countries and while intentionally acting on behalf of adversarial countries, their agents, or enterprises, knowingly direct, authorize, fund, or provide significant support to, or carry out activities that are adversarial to and undermine America’s interests in our hemisphere. These individuals – and their immediate family members – will be generally ineligible for entry into the United States.”
The visa restrictions specifically target 26 individuals.
The move follows the State Department pulling the lawful permanent resident (LPR) status of the niece and grand niece of deceased Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Major General Qasem Soleimani.
