Donald Trump is set to ban people from 41 countries from travelling to the US – with many told their government has 60 days to address deficiencies or they will remain on the list.
A memo shows swathes of nations divided into three separate groups – including full visa suspensions and partial suspensions.
Many are from the Middle East and Africa, with Afghanistan, Cuba, Iran and North Korea among the ten who face the most drastic measures.
In the second group, five countries would face partial suspensions that would impact tourist and student visas as well as other immigrant visas, with some exceptions.
And in a third group, a total of 26 countries would be considered for a partial suspension of US visa issuance if their governments ‘do not make efforts to address deficiencies within 60 days’, the memo said.
A US official cautioned there could be changes on the list and that it was yet to be approved by the administration, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after it was reported on by the New York Times.
For many in America, the policy will spark memories of Trump’s explosive ban on travelers from seven majority-Muslim nations during his first term in office.
US President Donald Trump steps off Air Force One as he arrives at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 14
Trump issued an executive order on January 20 requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the U.S. to detect national security threats.
That order directed several cabinet members to submit by March 21 a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their ‘vetting and screening information is so deficient.’
Trump’s directive is part of an immigration crackdown that he launched at the start of his second term.
He previewed his plan in an October 2023 speech, pledging to restrict people from the Gaza Strip, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and ‘anywhere else that threatens our security.’
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The dramatic new plans come as Trump escalated global tensions as he warned World War III could ‘very easily’ erupt and would prove to be ‘a war like no other’ with catastrophic nuclear weapons if peace talks over Ukraine failed.
The US president issued the stark warning last night, while revealing ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine are progressing – but devastation could yet be unleashed if the two nations cannot agree peace terms.
Speaking to the Justice Department he said: ‘I think we have it, I think we have it, but this could lead to World War III, very easily, could very easily lead to World War III.
‘But I think we’re in pretty good shape, a lot better than where we were before we got involved.
‘That was heading into World War III territory, that would’ve been a war like no other because of nuclear weapons, and other types of weapons that you don’t even wanna know about.’
Claiming much of the progress had been made since he became president, Trump went on to say that he had been speaking with the Russian premier ‘to get the war over’.
He said: ‘I think we’re doing well with Russia, we’re speaking with President Putin, we want to get the war over.’
Trump also told his audience that ‘maybe’ $350billion had been sent to Europe – a figure that analysts believe to be higher than accurate – and that he was on the pathway to a deal where he would be ‘getting that back’.
He added: ‘We’ve had some very good calls today with Russia, and with Ukraine, they’ve agreed to a ceasefire if we can get it with Russia. And it’s not easy. It’s a tough one.’
The US President continued to claim that at one point ‘there would have been no war had I been president. It just 100 per cent would not have happened.’