Trump says Chinese students in US will ‘be ok'
US President Donald Trump told reporters late Friday he wanted to assure Chinese international students in the country that they would be fine amid his administration's crackdown on academia.
Trump's administration this week said it would specifically target permissions for Chinese students, in its latest broadside against US higher education.
But when asked Friday what message he would send to Chinese college students in the country, Trump insisted: 'They're going to be ok. It's going to work out fine.'
'We just want to check out the individual students we have. And that's true with all colleges,' he told reporters.
The softer tone comes after a judge on Thursday extended a temporary block on Trump's bid to prevent Harvard from enrolling international students.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio vowed on Wednesday to 'aggressively' revoke visas to students from China. Rubio has already yanked thousands of visas, largely over students' involvement in activism critical of Israel's offensive in Gaza, but also over minor traffic violations and other infractions.
The Trump administration has been in an ongoing showdown with academia, and Harvard in particular, demanding it provide a list of students that the government is interested in—something the prestigious university has declined to do.
'I don't know why Harvard's not giving us the list. There's something going on because Harvard is not giving us a list,' Trump said Friday.
'They ought to give us a list and get themselves out of trouble,' he insisted, suggesting that 'they don't want to give the list because they have names on there that supposedly are quite bad.'
At graduation ceremonies this week, Harvard University President Alan Garber received a one-minute standing ovation when he called for universities to stand 'firm' in the war the Trump administration has waged against students and schools.
'We want people that can love our country and take care of our country and cherish our country,' Trump said Friday.
International students on average make up just under six percent of the US university population—far below Britain, the second top destination for international students, where the figure is 25 percent.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asharq Al-Awsat
an hour ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
China's Yunnan Hit with Floods, Mudslides from Intense Rains
Heavy rainfall triggering flash floods and mudslides have damaged roads, destroyed buildings and claimed bridges, wreaking havoc in China's southwestern Yunnan province on a long holiday weekend. No casualties were reported but more than 4,800 residents in Gongshan county were affected, with about one-third of them urgently relocated, state news agency Xinhua said. Over 600 tourists visiting rural scenic spots in the area on Saturday found themselves trapped, according to Xinhua, which reported 500 of them had been rescued by Sunday. Road access to mountainous sites popular with hikers such as Bingzhongluo town and Yubeng village in neighboring Deqin county were cut off, state broadcaster CCTV. The Dulong river saw flood waters swell to record levels, according to historical logs from a hydrological monitoring station. A four-storey building set along the river that had been evacuated collapsed, CCTV reported, showing a video of the structure tipping backwards and disappearing into a cloud of dust. The intense rainfall over a 12-hour period disrupted power supplies. Repair work to roads and power lines was underway, said state media. Local authorities had issued a red alert ahead of the rainstorm on Friday night but downgraded it to a yellow alert by Saturday morning. China uses a four-color warning system that escalates from blue, yellow, orange to red according to the level of precipitation and anticipated risks.
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
China's Yunnan hit with floods, mudslides from intense rains
BEIJING: Heavy rainfall triggering flash floods and mudslides have damaged roads, destroyed buildings and claimed bridges, wreaking havoc in China's southwestern Yunnan province on a long holiday weekend. No casualties were reported but more than 4,800 residents in Gongshan county were affected, with about one-third of them urgently relocated, state news agency Xinhua said. Over 600 tourists visiting rural scenic spots in the area on Saturday found themselves trapped, according to Xinhua, which reported 500 of them had been rescued by Sunday. Road access to mountainous sites popular with hikers such as Bingzhongluo town and Yubeng village in neighboring Deqin county were cut off, state broadcaster CCTV. The Dulong river saw flood waters swell to record levels, according to historical logs from a hydrological monitoring station. A four-story building set along the river that had been evacuated collapsed, CCTV reported, showing a video of the structure tipping backwards and disappearing into a cloud of dust. The intense rainfall over a 12-hour period disrupted power supplies. Repair work to roads and power lines was underway, said state media. Local authorities had issued a red alert ahead of the rainstorm on Friday night but downgraded it to a yellow alert by Saturday morning. China uses a four-color warning system that escalates from blue, yellow, orange to red according to the level of precipitation and anticipated risks.
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Trump Says Both Putin and Zelenskiy are Stubborn
President Donald Trump said on Friday that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy are stubborn as he tries to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. Asked by reporters in the Oval Office if he believed Putin was stubborn, Trump said he had been surprised and disappointed by Russian bombing in Ukraine while he was trying to arrange a ceasefire.
