Donald Trump's administration signed a new order on Wednesday, restricting travel to the US for citizens from 12 countries: Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
The order was approved in the national interest, the declaration stating that the countries listed do not have adequate screening and vetting processes needed to detect foreigners who pose a security threat to the United States.
The declaration also restricts the entry of citizens from seven other countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Trump said that considerations for these restrictions include the level of cooperation in information sharing, the threat of terrorism, the rate of visa violations, and the willingness of countries to readmit their deported citizens.
Through a video released by the White House, he directed the secretary of state to conduct security reviews, especially for high-risk countries and travel restrictions.
The policy mirrors a travel ban previously announced in January 2017, a week after Trump began his first term as president, covering seven Muslim-majority countries.
Despite widespread criticism, the ban was ultimately upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.
However, the policy was terminated by President Joe Biden in 2021.
