FG reacts to U.S.A. Visa restriction
The Federal Government of Nigeria has set up a committee to study and address the United States proclamation suspending the issuance of visas that can lead to permanent residency from Nigeria.
The government reacting to the United State Visa restriction placed on Nigeria said that the committee headed by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola will work with the U.S Government, INTERPOL and other stakeholders to ensure all updates are properly implemented.
“Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and other international allies especially on matters of global security,” Femi Adesian said in the statement by the government
STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE
— Presidency Nigeria (@NGRPresident) February 1, 2020
UNITED STATES SUSPENSION OF THE ISSUANCE OF IMMIGRANT VISAS TO NIGERIANS: pic.twitter.com/1iVv2WySv4
U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a directive to restrict immigration from six additional countries, citing security concerns, administration officials said on Friday.
The six nations are: Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania.
The countries will face tailored restrictions, the official said.
The new rules come into effect on February 22.
The new rules stop short of a blanket travel ban and will still allow certain visits to the U.S., notably those for non-immigration purposes, which raised questions about how the administration was defining security concerns.
No I won’t inherit anybody’s enemy by Femi Adesina
Read the full statement
On 31st January 2020, the United States (U.S) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced temporary travel restrictions on six (6) countries including Nigeria.
For Nigeria, the restriction is the suspension of the issuance of “immigrant visas” to Nigerian passport holders only. This suspension shall come into effect on 21st February 2020. The suspension does not apply to other U.S visas such as those for official, business, tourism and student travel.
The DHS states the suspension of “immigrant visas” became necessary following a review and update of the methodology (performance metrics) adopted by the U.S Government to assess compliance of certain security criteria by foreign governments. This resulted in certain enhancements on how information is shared between Nigeria and the U.S.
