The United States Government announced on Wednesday, May 28 that it was going to “actively” the visas of Chinese students, after Beijing criticized the suspension in the United States of the treatment of visa from foreign students, whose administration of Donald Trump wants to analyze social networks.
This is the last measure taken by the US administration as part of its offensive against universities, especially aimed at Harvard, who organizes its annual graduation ceremony on Thursday.
The US government “will actively revoke visas for Chinese students, especially those with links with the Chinese Communist Party or the student in sensitive sectors,” said American diplomacy Marco Rubio in a statement.
“We will also review the criteria to strengthen the examination of all the next Visa and Hong Kong visa applications,” added the Secretary of State.
More than 277,000 Chinese were registered in American universities by 2023-2024, they only exceeded, for the first time in years, by Indian students, according to a report approved by the State Department. Chinese students represent one of the most important sources of income for universities in the United States.
Since his return to the White House in January, Donald Trump has embarked on a vast campaign against universities that accuses of spreading an “awakened” ideology, particularly reproaching their policies to promote diversity or have left manifestations against the war in Gaza, which associates with anti -Semitism.
During his first term (2017-2021), the Republican billiona had mainly attacked Chinese students in the sectors considered sensitive, suspected of links with Chinese information. Marco Rubio’s announcement occurs after China asked the United States to “specifically guarantee the legitimate rights and interests of international students, including Chinese students.”
Suspension of visas
The Donald Trump administration, determined to impose its nationalist and conservative ideology, ordered the suspension of visas for foreign students on Tuesday, which wants to analyze social networks.
In an internal document consulted by the AFP, the United States Department of State now asks the embassies and selected the United States not to authorize “an appointment for new students’ visas or exchange programs”, waiting for the publication of “directives on the in -depth examination of social networks for all requests of this type.”
Since January, hundreds of foreign students have already seen their visas, while students in regular situations on American soil who participated in propaleinian demonstrations have been arrested and threatened with expulsion. Donald Trump’s burden on visas goes beyond students, the US administration announced on Wednesday that it will reject visas to foreign officials who “censor” Americans on social networks.
“Flagrant censorship actions”
Marco Rubio, surpassed by some for having retired the visas of people who criticized Israel, estimated that there were “shameless censorship actions” abroad against US companies. He announced on Wednesday, in the form of reprisals, “a new visa restriction policy that will apply to foreign officials and people who become accomplices of the censorship of the Americans,” without citing names.
However, the head of American diplomacy had addressed Judge Alexandre de Moraes last week of the Brazilian Supreme Court, who opposed Elon Musk by temporarily blocking his social network X in Brazil in 2024.
The administration of Donald Trump, very fond of social networks, also accused his German and British allies of having limited access to certain speeches qualified by these two countries of hate.
Source: BFM TV
