Several countries immediately hit back at Trump's expanded travel ban
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After implementing a travel ban, inspired by his first term in the White House, at the start of June, President Donald Trump announced it would expand to 20 more countries and the Palestinian Authority on Tuesday afternoon, Dec. 16.Passport holders from Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria, as well as the Palestinian Authority, have now been added to the list of countries completely banned from entering the United States. Fifteen other nations face sweeping travel limits, including a ban on applying for all types of immigrant and non-immigrant student and business visas.Newly added countries include Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. These join a longer list that previously included Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela. The new restrictions, which the Trump administration justified as being necessary over threats to "national security and public safety," will take effect on Jan. 1, 2026.Antigua ambassador says travel ban justification false, State Department had no prior noticeMany of the countries subject to partial restrictions have been placed on the list due to what the administration claims are "severe deficiencies in screening, vetting, and information-sharing" of those who apply for such visas.In response, Antiguan Prime Minister Gaston Browne issued a statement saying that the Caribbean country's government was "deeply disappointed" that it "has been included in this proclamation," especially since the accusation of the program allowing citizenship by investment "does not reflect the present reality of our laws."Related: Country to pull all visas for Americans after Trump travel banIn the White House announcement, President Trump accuses the Antiguan government of "Citizenship-by-Investment schemes that conceal identity and bypass vetting requirements and travel restrictions," granting passports to those who invest at least $230,000 in the local economy, even if they never live in the country.Antiguan Ambassador to the United States Sir Ronald Sanders also released a statement, cited by Investment Migration Insider. Sanders said he contacted the U.S. State Department to clarify the claim and explain that the program comes with a 30-day physical residency minimum.In response, State Department officials reportedly told Sanders that "they found the proclamation surprising and had received no prior notice of its issuance." Antigua and Barbuda is an archipelagic country in the Eastern Caribbean recently targeted by President Trump's expanded travel ban.Shutterstock Travel ban criticized as discriminatory, "needlessly cruel"A fellow Eastern Caribbean nation targeted by the ban, the island nation of Dominica also issued a statement saying that it is consulting the U.S. Embassy in Barbados (the nearest Caribbean country with U.S. diplomatic services) "with the utmost seriousness and urgency" for clarification on why its country was included and what it could change going forward.More Travel News:Major airline launches surprising flight between Las Vegas and ParisUnited Airlines CEO gives stark warning on Olympic GamesThe highest rooftop in Barcelona is in a surprising placeUS government issues sudden warning on Switzerland travelBoth when it was first introduced in June and now, the travel ban faced immediate criticism for what many see as unjustified targeting of specific countries."Expanding an already sweeping, discriminatory policy designed to bar Muslims and people of color from entering the United States is outrageous and needlessly cruel," Raha Wala, vice president of strategy and partnerships at the National Immigration Law Center, said in a statement. "Trump's bans separate families and strand people across oceans while doing nothing to make America safer."Related: The US has issued a sudden warning on Thailand travel