Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced late Wednesday that the U.S. will “aggressively revoke” visas of Chinese students.
The announcement included few details regarding how many visas would be revoked. He indicated it would focus on people with connections to the Chinese Communist Party, or students who are studying subjects considered sensitive.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, the U.S. State Department will work with the Department of Homeland Security to aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields,” he said in a statement.
“We will also revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications from the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong,” he added.
It wasn’t clear why the announcement was suddenly made Wednesday, and may indicate a new further deterioration in the relationship between China’s leadership and President Donald Trump.
Some 277,000 Chinese students studied in the U.S. last year. That makes them the second-largest group of foreign students in the U.S.
This is a developing story. Please check back for more.
