by WorldTribune Staff, September 25, 2017
U.S. President Donald Trump on Sept. 24 issued a full travel ban on nationals from North Korea.
Pyongyang “does not cooperate with the United States government in any respect,” the order said.
“Making America Safe is my number one priority. We will not admit those into our country we cannot safely vet,” Trump said in a tweet.
The new restrictions replace an expiring order. Seven other countries join North Korea on the new list which imposes complete or partial blocks on travel to the United States.
Sudan, one of the six majority-Muslim countries on the original travel ban, was removed from the list.
Along with North Korea, a full travel ban was placed on nationals from Chad.
The order noted that Islamic State (ISIS), Al Qaida and Boko Haram all have a presence in Chad.
“Chad does not adequately share public-safety and terrorism-related information,” the order said.
Other countries on the list include Venezuela, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen.
Restrictions for Venezuela were limited to officials from a long list of government agencies and their families.
“The inclusion of those countries, Venezuela and North Korea, was about the fact that those governments are simply not compliant with our basic security requirements,” the order said.
Trump said the new action was needed in order to pressure the countries to improve procedures for identifying their nationals and sharing information with the U.S.
In addition, the president said, the list was created to “advance foreign policy, national security and counterterrorism objectives.”
“These restrictions are both vital to national security and conditions-based, not time-based,” a senior administration official said, noting that countries can be removed from the list if they can rise to U.S. traveler vetting standards.
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