 "Travellers walk through Chicago O'Hare International Airport during the week of Thanksgiving in Chicago, Illinois, US, November 27, 2024. Representational Image/Reuters")
The United States is considering adding citizens from 36 additional countries to its travel ban list, The Washington Post has reported.
According to a State Department memo accessed by The Washington Post, this would represent a significant expansion of the travel restrictions announced by the Trump administration earlier this month.
The list includes some key US allies, such as Egypt and Djibouti.
The State Department said several of the countries under consideration do not meet essential requirements. These include the absence of a competent and cooperative central government to issue reliable identity documents, or a high number of citizens who have overstayed their visas in the United States.
The memo also notes that if a country agrees to accept third-country nationals being deported from the US, it could help alleviate some of these concerns.
The countries that may face travel bans or visa restrictions include 25 African nations: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
A number of Caribbean nations are also on the list: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia.
Four Asian countries are named: Bhutan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, and Syria. From Oceania, the countries listed are Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.
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More ShortsThese countries have until 8 am on Wednesday to submit an initial plan to the State Department outlining how they intend to meet the new requirements.