Chad retaliates against US travel ban, halts visa issuance to Americans

Chad’s President, Mahamat Deby, has retaliated against Donald Trump’s travel ban by suspending visa issuance to US citizens.

Mr Deby disclosed this on Thursday, a day after Mr Trump signed the proclamation banning Chad nationals and citizens from six other African countries from entering the US.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the new US travel ban affected 12 countries while seven other countries were issued visa restrictions.

Aside Chad, other affected African countries are Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Libya, Somalia and Sudan.

According to Mr Trump, the ban was imposed to protect the US against foreign terrorists and other security threats.

“It is the policy of the United States to protect its 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.

“More importantly, the United States must identify such aliens before their admission or entry into the United States,” he said.

However, Chad, in response, said it would be implementing the principle of reciprocity by suspending visa issuance to Americans.

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In a post on Facebook, President Deby wrote, “I have instructed the government to act in accordance with the principles of reciprocity and suspend the issuance of visas to US citizens.

“Chad has no planes to offer, no billions of dollars to give but Chad has its dignity and pride.”

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Meanwhile, the African Union Commission has warned that the arbitrary travel restrictions imposed on African countries by the US government could strain decades-long diplomatic relations between the two sides.

According to the commission, the US government needs to adopt a more balanced and evidence-based approach in its decision making.

“The African Union Commission respectfully appeals to the United States to exercise this right in a manner that is balanced, evidence-based, and reflective of the long-standing partnership between the United States and Africa,” the commission said.