Donald Trump is considering issuing sweeping travel restrictions on citizens from 43 countries as he continues his immigration crackdown.
An internal US government memo shows the countries divided into three categories, labelled red, orange and yellow.
The red group, comprising 11 countries, would face the most severe restrictions – a complete ban on their citizens entering the United States. They include Afghanistan, Cuba, Iran, Syria and Venezuela.
Countries in the second category – including Belarus, Russia, Pakistan and Haiti – would see their visas sharply restricted. According to the New York Times, which first reported the proposals, affluent business travellers from these countries might still be allowed to enter, but not people travelling on immigrant or tourist visas.
Citizens in this category would also be subjected to mandatory in-person interviews in order to receive a visa.
People from countries on the yellow list – such as Cambodia, Dominica, Cameroon and Zimbabwe – would face a partial suspension of visas to the US, if the governments “do not make efforts to address deficiencies within 60 days”. They also face a threat of being moved on to the red or orange lists.
It is not clear whether people with existing visas would be exempted from the ban, or have their visas cancelled, nor if the administration intends to exempt existing green card holders, who are already approved for lawful permanent residency in the US.
The list is the result of Mr Trump’s executive order in January which required the State Department to identify countries “for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries”.
The US president said he was taking the action to protect American citizens “from aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, espouse hateful ideology or otherwise exploit the immigration laws for malevolent purposes”.
An official speaking on the condition of anonymity cautioned that there could be changes to the list because it had been drafted several weeks ago, and because it had not yet been approved by the administration.
However, further details are expected next week, when the draft report is understood to be due. Officials at embassies and in regional bureaus, as well as security specialists, are in the process of reviewing the draft.
Mr Trump’s directive goes further than he did in his first term, during which he banned travellers from seven majority-Muslim nations.
Russia is in the orange category in which visas are sharply restricted. If that decision is made final, it could endanger the thawing of relations between Moscow and Washington.
The decision to include Venezuela could also reignite tensions. The two nations have a fraught history, which includes Mr Trump’s recent cancellation of a key oil licence which had allowed Chevron, the US-based oil major, to operate in the South American country.
The government in Caracas responded by pausing flights of migrants being deported to Venezuela from the US. This week the countries agreed to restart flights.
The list follows a decision made last week to cancel the green card granted to Mahmoud Khalil, a prominent Palestinian activist, because he had led campus protests against Israel’s war in Gaza.
