The decision is taking place in South Sudan to raise political tensions and create fears of a new civil war.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Washington has revoked all visas held by South Sudan passport holders, and has accused governments of African countries of not accepting repatriation of citizens and “using the United States.”
“All countries must accept the return of their citizens in a timely manner when other countries, including the United States, try to eliminate them,” Rubio said in a statement on Saturday. “The transitional government in South Sudan has failed to fully respect this principle.”
Rubio added that the US will “prevent further issuances to prevent South Sudan passport holders from entering the US.”
It was the first step to single out all passport holders in a particular country since President Donald Trump returned to the White House on January 20th to campaign on an anti-immigration platform.
South Sudanese citizens have been granted “Temporary Protected Status” (TPS) under the control of Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, and their designation is due to expire on May 3rd this year.
The United States is granting TPS to protect people from deportation to foreign citizens who cannot safely return home due to war, natural disasters or other “extraordinary” conditions.
Washington is “ready to review these actions when South Sudan is fully cooperating,” Rubio said.
South Sudan’s violence
Recent violence between government forces and armed opposition groups has fueled tensions in South Sudan. Some observers fear a renewal of the civil war that killed 400,000 people between 2013 and 2018.
Last week, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged regional and international leaders to prevent South Sudan from falling into another civil war “over the deep by.”
Guterres warned that the world’s latest and one of its poor countries is facing a “security emergency” with a “political upheaval” that has been intensified in conflict.
The rising tensions between President Salva Kir and Vice President Leek Machar culminated in the latter arrest last month. His party said the arrests had ruined the power-sharing 2018 peace agreement that ended the long-standing battle.
The UN reported a clash between troops loyal to Kiel and Macher outside the capital Juba.
Source link
