Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Indian officials Sunday there will be no carve-outs from America’s immigration overhaul, even for one of Washington’s closest partners in Asia.
The message came at a joint press conference in New Delhi, where Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar raised concerns about wait times and visa denials hitting Indian workers and travelers. Jaishankar said he had raised the issue of legitimate travelers facing challenges with visa issuance, and urged that legal mobility not be “adversely impacted” as the U.S. tackles illegal immigration.
Rubio said the changes are not India-specific. The policy applies to every country, he said, and stems from a border collapse the U.S. has been trying to reverse. “We’ve had a migratory crisis in the United States,” Rubio told reporters. “We had over 20 million people illegally enter the United States over the last few years, and we’ve had to address that challenge.”
He said national interest must drive immigration decisions, period. The U.S. lets in roughly one million legal permanent residents per year and values India as a “strategic ally,” Rubio said, but those facts don’t change the policy.
The secretary framed the overhaul as “modernization” rather than a crackdown. He acknowledged there would be friction during the transition period and urged India to give it time. Once the new system is in place, Rubio said, it will be more efficient and better for Indian workers seeking to come to the United States than the previous system.
Indian companies have invested more than $20 billion in the U.S. economy, Rubio noted, and he said the relationship will come out stronger on the other side.
He also dismissed concerns about anti-Indian comments circulating online, saying every country has people who say foolish things and India should not take them as representative of America.
The reforms are “long overdue,” Rubio said.
Visa backlogs for Indian nationals have reached extreme lengths. Standard B-1/B-2 visitor and business visa wait times at some U.S. consulates in India have stretched beyond 250 days. India sends more high-skilled workers to U.S. companies through the H-1B visa program than any other country. Some House Republicans have pushed to eliminate that program entirely, arguing it displaces American workers.
The New Delhi press conference was part of a broader diplomatic visit. Rubio later attended a gala marking the 250th anniversary of American independence.
