WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States is considering extending its travel ban to 36 more countries, a person who has seen the memo said on Monday, marking a dramatic potential expansion of entry restrictions to nearly 1.5 billion people.
The US State Department announced early this month that it was barring entry to citizens of 12 nations, including Afghanistan, Haiti and Iran, and imposing a partial ban on travelers from seven other countries, reviving a divisive measure from President Donald Trump's first term.
However, broadening the travel ban to include an additional three dozen nations—such as allies of the United States like Egypt, along with various others across Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and the Pacific—seems to intensify the president's campaign against immigration.
The Washington Post mentioned that they had examined the internal memorandum and stated that it bore the signature of Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The document was addressed to diplomats handling relations with those nations.
An individual who viewed the document verified its correctness to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Apparently, it grants the governments of the countries mentioned a 60-day period to fulfill the new conditions set by the State Department.
The list encompasses the most populated nations in Africa such as Nigeria, Ethiopia, Egypt, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Tanzania, along with Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Saint Lucia, South Sudan, Syria, and Vanuatu.
If the prohibition were extended to encompass every nation mentioned in the memorandum, approximately one person out of every five globally would reside in a country subject to U.S. travel limitations.
The 19 nations experiencing total or partial travel restrictions to the U.S., along with the additional 36 mentioned in the recent document, represent approximately 1.47 billion individuals, which is about 18 percent of the world’s populace.
The State Department refused to verify the memo, stating that it does not discuss internal deliberations.
However, the organization stated in an announcement that "we continuously reassess policies to guarantee the protection of Americans and to ensure that foreign citizens comply with our regulations."
When the original ban was announced earlier this month, Trump cautioned that it might be extended to additional nations “as new threats arise globally.”
Initially, Egypt was not included in the ban; however, it is part of the proposed subsequent list.
Trump said the initial measure was spurred by a recent "terrorist attack" on Jews in Colorado.
U.S. authorities stated that the individual behind the assault, Mohamed Sabry Soliman—an Egyptian national as per legal papers—was residing in the country unlawfully after exceeding his tourist visa limits; however, he had submitted an application for asylum back in September 2022.