Move ‘political and discriminatory'
Beijing reacted in fury at the US government's vow to revoke Chinese students' visas, condemning President Donald Trump's crackdown on international scholars as 'political and discriminatory'.
Trump's administration on Wednesday said it would remove permissions for Chinese students, one of the largest sources of revenue for American universities, in his latest broadside against US higher education.
The United States will also revise visa criteria to tighten checks on all future applications from China and Hong Kong, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters.
Blasting the United States for 'unreasonably' cancelling Chinese students' visas, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing had lodged its opposition with Washington.
Rubio had upped the ante after China criticised his decision a day earlier to suspend visa appointments for students worldwide at least temporarily.
The Trump administration has already sought to end permission for all international students at Harvard University, which has rebuffed pressure from the president related to student protests.
Young Chinese people have long been crucial to US universities, which rely on international students paying full tuition.
China sent 277,398 students in the 2023-24 academic year, although India for the first time in years surpassed it, according to a State Department-backed report of the Institute of International Education.
Beijing's Mao on Wednesday said that China urged the United States to 'safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of international students, including those from China'.
Rubio has already trumpeted the revocation of thousands of visas, largely to international students who were involved in activism critical of Israel.
A cable signed by Rubio on Tuesday ordered US embassies and consulates not to allow 'any additional student or exchange visa ... appointment capacity until further guidance is issued' on ramping up screening of applicants' social media accounts.
On Wednesday, Rubio heaped pressure on China, saying Washington will 'revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.
'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 said.
But the slew of measures also threaten to pressure students from other countries.
In Taiwan, a PhD student set to study in California complained of 'feeling uncertain' by the visa pause.
'I understand the process may be delayed but there is still some time before the semester begins in mid-August,' said the 27-year-old student who did not want to be identified.
'All I can do now is wait and hope for the best.' — AFP
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