By Humeyra Pamuk
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States is pausing all routine visa services at U.S. embassy in Nigerien capital Niamey until further notice, according to a State Department spokesperson and an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters on Saturday.
The July 25-dated cable did not provide a reason for the move but a State Department spokesperson said the pause, which would cover all immigrant and non-immigrant visa categories, was in place until Washington addressed “concerns with the Government of Niger.”
The spokesperson did not provide further details on the reason, but said that most diplomatic and official visas were excepted from the pause.
“The Trump Administration is focused on protecting our nation and our citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process,” the Department spokesperson said.
The diplomatic cable also instructed consular officers in other visa processing posts to apply “heightened scrutiny” when assessing non-immigrant visa applications for Nigerien nationals, whose overstay rates it said were 8 percent for visitor visas and 27 percent for student and exchange visas.
Consular managers should make an effort to reduce the number of overstays by nonimmigrant visa holders in the United States, the cable said and added: “In this regard, particular vigilance is needed in adjudicating Nigerien NIV applicants.”
The U.S. embassy in Niamey has informed all individuals impacted, the spokesperson added.
As part of his hardline stance on immigration, President Donald Trump has ordered a nationwide campaign to arrest migrants who are in the country illegally and has vowed to deport millions of people, executing raids at work sites including farms that were largely exempted from enforcement during his first term.
Trump administration officials have said student visa and green card holders are subject to deportation over their support for Palestinians and criticism of Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza, calling their actions a threat to U.S. foreign policy and accusing them of being pro-Hamas.
Rubio in May said the number of visas he has revoked was probably in the thousands. The State Department under his leadership significantly tightened social media vetting for U.S. visa applicants.
The U.S. military in September said it had completed its withdrawal from Niger, after the West African nation’s ruling junta in April 2024 ordered Washington to withdraw its nearly 1,000 military personnel from the country.
It was an embarrassing setback for Washington that followed a coup last year in the West African nation. Before the coup, Niger had been a key partner in the U.S. fight against insurgents in the Sahel region of Africa, who have killed thousands of people and displaced millions more.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
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