For Indian students, dreams of America are suddenly in doubt
For Indian students, dreams of America are suddenly in doubt
Anupreeta DasPragati KB
New York Times
Updated: Jun 02, 2025, 15:14 IST IST
Nobody knows what the halt on visa interviews means and how long it will last. The uncertainty has upended thousands of carefully made plans
In India, the country that sends more students to the United States than any other, young people who had hoped to pursue higher education in America this fall described feeling in a state of limbo after the Trump administration's decision to pause interviews with foreign nationals applying for student visas.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
22 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
HC orders release of 18-year-old daughter of Bangladeshi national from detention
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Tuesday ordered the Mankhurd police to release the 18-year-old daughter of a Bangladeshi national who was detained by the Nirbhaya Cell of the police station for inquiry regarding his citizenship and was later deported to the neighbouring country. A vacation bench of justices Neela Gokhale and Firdosh P Pooniwalla ordered the police to release the teenager immediately, saying her detention was not necessary for the purpose of the inquiry. The court was hearing a petition filed by the 18-year-old girl and her two younger siblings aged 16 and 8 years, who contended that they were born in India and had all requisite documents to prove their Indian citizenship. According to their petition, their father, Dadamiya Khan, had been residing in India for over 37 years. He had married an Indian woman named Mariyam Khan and was working as a cab driver. While all three children were detained by Mankhurd police following a special drive to identify foreign nationals staying illegally in India, the two younger siblings were handed over to their mother after they filed the Habeas Corpus petition. The children's counsel, advocate Siddha Pamecha, submitted their birth certificates showing they had been born in India and said they could not have been detained by the police over their father's allegedly circumspect citizenship. Even Dadamiya Khan was an Indian citizen and had all identity documents like PAN card, ration card and voters' identity card issued by the Election Commission of India, the lawyer said. Advocate Manisha Jagtap, representing the central government, pointed out that in the inquiry conducted by police, Khan had conceded that he was Bangladeshi national and he had illegally entered India as there were no sources of livelihood in his country. While he had been deported, an inquiry was underway regarding his citizenship under relevant provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 as well as the central government's order dated May 2, 2025, the lawyer said, explaining the grounds for which his 18-year-old daughter was detained. The judges, however, felt that it was not necessary for the police to keep the 18-year-old in custody and ordered her immediate release. The court restrained the girl and her two siblings from leaving the court's jurisdiction without prior permission and directed them to be available as and when called by the investigating officer.
Indian Express
22 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Staying the course on trade pacts with the UK and US
The uncertainty unleashed by Donald Trump's tariffs has only been aggravated by a spate of recent court rulings. On May 28, the US Court of International Trade struck down Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs, saying that the emergency law (International Emergency Economic Powers Act) does not give the President the power to impose broad tariffs. However, a day later, a federal appeals court temporarily reinstated the tariffs. The case is now likely to work its way through the US legal system. The uncertainty is likely to linger on as the 90-day pause on the Liberation Day tariffs ends in the second week of July. The Trump administration may have hoped that some trade deals would be quickly negotiated. And while the US and the UK have reached an agreement — the deal was announced on May 8th — progress with other major trading nations/blocks remains a protracted process. Take the case of China. A few days ago, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is reported to have said that trade talks between the US and China 'are a bit stalled'. Last Friday, Trump said that China has 'totally violated' its agreement with the US, a charge that China has rejected. The US President is expected to speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping this week to iron out their differences. In the case of Japan, several rounds of talks have taken place, and another is expected before the G7 summit. But last Friday, the legal challenges to his tariffs notwithstanding, Trump also raised the tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent, potentially impacting countries such as Canada, Mexico and South Korea, which account for a sizeable share of US steel imports. A day later, the European Union, which had agreed to 'accelerate talks' on a US trade deal, has also responded firmly, saying it is prepared to impose 'countermeasures' against the US. It noted that such moves to increase tariffs 'undermine ongoing efforts to reach a negotiated solution'. The new tariffs are effective from June 4. These latest tariff moves come at a time when India and the US are negotiating a bilateral trade deal. A US team is expected to visit India over the coming few days. On Monday, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, speaking in Washington at the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum's leadership summit, said that a deal between the US and India could happen in the 'not too distant future'. The India-EU trade deal also appears to be on course. As per a report, the two sides have agreed on several chapters, and the pact could be concluded before the end of the year. Coming after the finalisation of the India-UK agreement, the successful culmination of these deals would increase the country's attractiveness as an investment destination.
Indian Express
22 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Why Trump has changed his tune on Iran
After less than two months in office, US President Donald Trump made a 'sudden' offer to Iran's Supreme Leader for direct US-Iran talks on the Iranian nuclear weapons programme and easing of US sanctions. So far, five rounds of US-Iran talks have been led by the US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Though the talks remained on track up to the third round, both sides started hardening their stances before the fourth round, held just a day before Trump's three-nation Gulf tour. However, it was before the fifth round that both drew irreconcilable red lines about Iranian enrichment capability. While Witkoff stressed that Iran can't have any enrichment capability, Araghchi tweeted 'no enrichment, no deal'. Despite serious doubts, the fifth round took place on May 23. It appears that the talks did not collapse and both sides have taken back proposals to ponder over. Will the talks continue and could they succeed? In 2015, the US and other global powers had stitched together a Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action (JCPOA) deal with Iran to bring its nuclear programme under stricter international inspections. This was to ensure that Iran pursued only a peaceful civil nuclear programme. In return, Iran got relief from the sanctions. However, in 2018, based on 'consultation with Middle Eastern allies' — a reference to Saudi Arabia and Israel — Trump had walked out of the deal unilaterally, calling it 'defective'. Other parties to the deal could not salvage it and, faced with US sanctions, Iran reduced its openness to international scrutiny. The geopolitics of the Middle East has undergone a sea change since Trump's first term and so has his approach to solving conflicts. The genocide in Gaza has united the Sunni Arab states behind a two-state solution. China has successfully brokered a Saudi-Iran rapprochement. Iran has gone on a diplomatic overdrive to build a better understanding with Sunni Arab states, including on its nuclear programme. These factors created favourable conditions for US-Iran talks. Just before his Gulf tour, Trump had hinted at potential consultations with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar on the issue. During his tour, Saudi foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al Saud publicly supported the US-Iran talks. In Doha, applauding the Emir of Qatar's strong push for diplomacy with Iran, Trump assured protection of Qatar's interests. In early March, Qatar PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani had warned against targeting Iranian nuclear facilities as that could contaminate the waters of the Gulf and threaten the lives of people in Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait. The three states with minimal natural water reserves depend on desalinated water drawn from the Gulf. Apart from other factors, Trump has also done favours for the Gulf states to try and secure their backing for the US-Iran nuclear deal. This includes ongoing talks for a Saudi nuclear deal, a six-month waiver on sanctions for Syria and a personal meeting between Trump and Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (once a designated person) along with the Saudi crown prince. More importantly, the US has its own security interests riding on a good deal with Iran. A detailed assessment made by the US Intelligence Community (IC) put out in March portrayed Iran as part of a pack of 'adversaries' — along with Russia, China and North Korea — 'who were individually and collectively challenging US interests'. The assessment observed that growing cooperation between and among these adversaries was increasing their 'fortitude against the United States (and so was)… the potential for hostilities with any one of them drawing in another', and pressuring other global actors to choose sides. Engaging Iran as a part of a broader axis that includes Russia may be an important factor guiding Trump's aggressive diplomacy while upping trade and non-trade wars with China. The assessment also concluded that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, wants to avoid embroiling Iran in an 'expanded, direct conflict' with the US and its allies and has not yet authorised a nuclear weapons programme that he had suspended in 2003. Iran, as per the assessment, was not building a nuclear weapon and can't do it without a decision by the Supreme Leader. However, Iran was likely to continue research and development of chemical and biological agents for offensive purposes. At the start of the talks, Witkoff had publicly stated that Iran did not need more than 3.67 per cent enriched uranium for civil nuclear purposes and that verification was required for 'reported' enriched uranium up to 20 per cent and 60 per cent. He also outlined the need for verification on weaponisation, delivery systems and nuclear triggers that Iran might possess. Iran's establishment has a lot riding on maintaining enrichment capability for peaceful uses as well as asserting its sovereignty to its people. In addition to 3.67 per cent enriched uranium, Iran, like other nations, would also like to make or be able to import around 20 per cent enriched uranium for medical use. The discussions appear to be now focussed on 'specificities' and hence, will require tough negotiations by both parties. By taking maximalist positions, both sides seem to be insulating this sensitive phase of negotiations from potential sabotage. Trump, too, has said he 'warned' Israel against any pre-emptive strikes on Iranian nuclear sites to give US diplomacy a chance to succeed. (The writer is a security analyst and former director general of police)
