Washington–US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday strongly defended the Trump administration’s tightening of visa and refugee policies, asserting that visas are a privilege rather than a right and must serve America’s national security interests — remarks likely to draw close attention from Indian students and skilled professionals, one of the largest groups of US visa holders.
Addressing a wide-ranging news conference, Rubio said the administration has revoked or denied between 60,000 and 70,000 visas over the past year for a variety of reasons, including cases involving individuals already present in the United States as well as applicants seeking entry or reentry.
“Our visa system should reflect the national interest,” Rubio said, adding that US law gives the government “the right, and in fact the obligation” to revoke visas when individuals engage in activities deemed contrary to American interests.
Emphasising stricter post-entry scrutiny, Rubio said revocation authority is a natural extension of the power to deny visas in the first place. “If you have the power to deny someone a visa before they get one, you most certainly have the power to revoke it once they get one and then do something they shouldn’t be doing,” he said.
Rejecting criticism that the measures are politically motivated, Rubio insisted that visa actions are driven by security and legal concerns. “Who you allow to visit your country should reflect the national interest. A visa is a visitor. It’s not a right,” he said.
Rubio also defended curbs on refugee admissions, including limits affecting religious minorities, arguing that inadequate vetting in previous years allowed large numbers of people to enter the country without sufficient background checks. He said some applicants originated from regions where reliable records were difficult or impossible to verify.
“We know for a fact there are people in this country who got in through some form of vetting that was wholly insufficient,” he said.
While underscoring a tougher enforcement approach, Rubio maintained that the US remains highly open to legal immigration, noting that close to one million people are expected to receive green cards this year. However, he said the administration intends to end what he described as an era of “reckless migratory incompetence.”
“There is a desire in our country to put a stop to that until we can fix the processes,” he said.
On visa backlogs affecting foreign religious workers, including priests, Rubio said changes are being prepared and an announcement is expected early next month following consultations with religious authorities.
He also addressed recent suspensions affecting student and diversity-based visa programmes, saying they were intended to identify systemic flaws in vetting procedures. “You suspend the program to figure out whether something should have been a red flag but wasn’t identified,” he said.
Rubio’s comments come amid growing anxiety among Indian students and professionals, particularly those in higher education and skilled employment categories, who account for a significant share of US visa holders. His emphasis on visa revocation authority and post-entry monitoring signals a shift that could affect not only future applicants but also individuals already residing in the United States.
Defending the approach as consistent with international norms, Rubio said, “We have a right, like every sovereign country does, to know who you are,” noting that many nations maintain immigration policies more restrictive than those of the US.
The remarks reinforce the Trump administration’s broader stance that immigration and visa policies will be guided primarily by national interest, security screening, and enforcement — a position likely to spark debate in India, where US education and employment opportunities remain highly sought after. (Source: IANS)
