Latest news with #PresidentialProclamation
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Judge Shoots Down Trump's New Plot to Keep Foreign Students Out of Harvard
A federal judge has blocked President Trump's latest effort to prevent international students from studying at Harvard University. The president's latest move in his war against the Ivy League school saw him sign a proclamation that claimed that letting foreign nationals study at Harvard is 'detrimental to the interests of the United States,' because 'Harvard's conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers.' Hours after Harvard's lawyers filed a complaint against the proclamation Thursday, U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs issued a temporary order which blocked anyone from 'implementing, instituting, maintaining, enforcing, or giving force or effect to the Presidential Proclamation,' after agreeing with Harvard that it would cause 'immediate and irreparable injury' to the university before courts could properly review the case. Last month, Burroughs issued a similar order that blocked the Trump administration's previous attempt to ban foreign students from enrolling at Harvard, which was also extended after the university claimed the president's latest proclamation was an attempt to illegally bypass the judge's earlier ruling. 'The Proclamation denies thousands of Harvard's students the right to come to this country to pursue their education and follow their dreams, and it denies Harvard the right to teach them. Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard,' the university claimed in its legal filing. Harvard President Alan Garber claimed the move was retaliation from Trump after the university refused to allow the government to control the curriculum, governance, and ideology of its students and faculty members. Garber previously claimed the institution will never stray from its 'core, legally-protected principles,' even if ordered to by the federal government. 'International students and scholars make outstanding contributions inside and outside of our classrooms and laboratories, fulfilling our mission of excellence in countless ways,' he added in a letter to the student body on Thursday night. 'We will celebrate them, support them, and defend their interests as we continue to assert our Constitutional rights.' In a statement on Thursday, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson called Harvard 'a hotbed of anti-American, anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist agitators.' 'Harvard's behavior has jeopardized the integrity of the entire U.S. student and exchange visitor visa system and risks compromising national security,' she added, Reuters reports. 'Now it must face the consequences of its actions.' Harvard has denied the claims.
Indian Express
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
US govt to revoke Chinese students' visas: Why now, the likely impact
The Donald Trump administration announced Wednesday (May 28) that it will work 'to aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.' US Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not clarify how the administration will determine the connection to China's ruling party, which has around 100 million members, or what fields of study would be targeted. He said, 'We will also revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future applications from the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong.' Global Times, the CCP mouthpiece, cited a spokesperson as saying, 'US' unjust revocation of Chinese students' visas under the pretext of ideology and national security has seriously undermined their legitimate rights and interests and disrupted normal people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. China firmly opposes this.' The move comes amid increasing restrictions on the entry of international students in the US, over pro-Palestine campus activism. Just last week, a court stayed a government order that ceased Harvard University's ability to enrol foreign students. The US Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem, said in a letter, 'This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus.' The campaign against Chinese students, however, goes back to the first Trump administration. During Trump's first term (2017-2021), his administration targeted Chinese students for threats to national security and to safeguard US technology and intellectual property. Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation in May 2020, saying, 'The PRC's (People's Republic of China) acquisition of sensitive United States technologies and intellectual property to modernize its military is a threat to our Nation…' It added that the PRC authorities 'use some Chinese students, mostly post‑graduate students and post-doctorate researchers, to operate as non-traditional collectors of intellectual property'. Those associated with the People's Liberation Army (the army of the CCP and China) were at 'high risk of being exploited or co-opted by the PRC authorities and provide particular cause for concern.' Later that year, the visas of over 1,000 Chinese nationals who purportedly met the criteria were revoked. The Joe Biden administration also denied visas under the proclamation. The Trump administration further trained its lens on the Chinese government-supported Confucius Institutes, which promote Chinese culture and language. Its Washington, DC centre was designated a 'foreign mission', allowing the US government greater access to its operations and funding. Most of these centres have shut down since then. In 2018, the Justice Department launched the 'China Initiative' to investigate Chinese economic espionage. Among other things, it targeted Chinese and Chinese-American researchers for allegedly concealing ties to the Chinese government and military. Despite the threat of espionage, such programs have been questioned over their efficacy and procedures. The MIT Technology Review found in 2021 that only about a quarter of people and institutions charged under the China Initiative have been convicted. 'Many cases have little or no obvious connection to national security or the theft of trade secrets,' it said. The program ended in 2022 over criticism that it promoted discrimination against Asian-Americans. Historically, Chinese students have sought overseas education as admission to domestic institutes can be highly competitive, and given the prestige that US educational institutions hold. Between 2010 and 2019, China was the biggest source of international students globally, in terms of total numbers. However, the numbers dipped in 2020 due to the pandemic-induced border closures. Even after the borders reopened, their outflow remained comparatively lower. The Economist Intelligence Unit attributed the slump to growing geopolitical tensions between China and the West, and enhanced domestic opportunities. However, many Chinese students still pursue education abroad, though data points to a shifting preference from the US to the UK. Data from the Open Doors project of the US State Department shows an over 25 per cent decline in the number of Chinese students studying in the US in the last five years. In 2023-24, as many as 2,77,398 Chinese nationals were studying in the US, down from 3,72,532 in 2019-20. Still, students from China form nearly a quarter of all international students in the US, behind only India at 29 per cent. In 2023, Chinese students contributed $14.29 billion to the US economy, including their tuition fees, accommodation and expenditure. What could the impact be? Experts have argued that membership in the CCP cannot be the sole grounds for suspicion. For Chinese citizens, joining the most powerful organisation in the country, one that controls most private and public activity, opens up job and business opportunities. It is also a means of upward social mobility, and doesn't necessarily indicate total ideological alignment. Notably, the latest announcement comes weeks after the US and China climbed down from the steep tariffs they had imposed on each other, following Trump's 'Liberation Day' announcement. The US' tariffs on China have now decreased from a staggering 145 per cent to 30 per cent, and China reduced the duties on American goods from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. This marked a major de-escalation and was seen as a positive sign for relations between the world's two largest economies. Revoking visas could harm the temporary truce, affecting future US-China trade talks. Sonal Gupta is a senior sub-editor on the news desk. She writes feature stories and explainers on a wide range of topics from art and culture to international affairs. She also curates the Morning Expresso, a daily briefing of top stories of the day, which won gold in the 'best newsletter' category at the WAN-IFRA South Asian Digital Media Awards 2023. She also edits our newly-launched pop culture section, Fresh Take. ... Read More
Hans India
14-05-2025
- Business
- Hans India
India updates WTO on tariff plan
New Delhi: India has informed the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that it proposes to impose retaliatory tariffs on select American goods, to counter the duties on Indian steel and aluminium exports levied by the US as safeguard duties. According to a WTO communication, these US safeguard measures would impact $7.6 billion worth of imports of Indian products, with an estimated duty collection of $1.91 billion. In April, India requested consultations with the US under the WTO's safeguard agreement when the decision to levy the tariffs was announced. The US stance at the WTO was that the tariffs on Indian goods were imposed on national security grounds and should not be regarded as safeguard measures. India, in its notification to the WTO, announced its intent to suspend concessions and other obligations in response to the US safeguard measures on steel, aluminium, and related products, as outlined in a Presidential Proclamation dated February 10, 2025, with the measures set to take effect on March 12. The WTO communication, dated May 9, 2025, was circulated at India's request. It noted that although the US has not formally notified these measures to the WTO, they are effectively considered safeguard measures. 'India maintains that the measures taken by the US are not consistent with the General Agreement on Trade and Tariff (GATT) 1994 and Agreement on safeguards (AoS),' it said, adding that as consultations provided for under a provision of the AoS have not taken place, India reserves the right to suspend concessions or other obligations that are substantially equivalent to the adverse effects of the measure to India's trade,' India's notification said. Without prejudice to the effective exercise of its right to suspend substantially equivalent obligations, India reserves its right to suspend concessions after the expiration of 30 days from the date of this notification, it further said.
India Gazette
13-05-2025
- Business
- India Gazette
India seeks to levy duties on US steel and aluminum
New Delhi has approached the WTO to impose retaliatory duties on Washington, in response to tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump India has approached the World Trade Organization (WTO) with a proposal to impose retaliatory duties against the US over American tariffs on steel and aluminum. The move comes after the US imposed a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports in March, which was an extension of measures initially introduced in 2018 during Donald Trump's first term as president. "India hereby notifies the Council for Trade in Goods of its proposed suspension of concessions and other obligations... This notification is made in connection with safeguard measures extended by the United States of America on imports of aluminium, steel and derivative articles, vide Presidential Proclamation... dated 10 February 2025, with the effective date of 12 March 2025," a WTO communication said. India requested consultations with the US under the WTO's safeguard agreement after Trump announced the new tariffs this year. However, Washington responded by stating that the decision was made on the grounds of national security, and therefore should not be viewed as a safeguard measure. The WTO safeguard agreement provides an option for a country to retaliate when another member invokes safeguard measures without proper notification. India, the world's second-largest crude steel producer, said in the WTO document that the Trump administration's measures will affect $7.6 billion worth of Indian products exported to the US, according to a Reuters report. New Delhi is currently putting the finishing touches to abilateraltrade deal with Washington. US Vice President J.D. Vance announced last month that the two countries have agreed on terms for bilateral trade negotiations, calling it a roadmap to a final deal. The timing of India's WTO action is sensitive and could cast a shadow over talks with the US on a broader free trade agreement, Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative think tank, was quoted by news agencies as saying. India will inform both the Council for Trade in Goods and the Committee on Safeguards of its next steps, and has also taken up the tariff issue bilaterally with the US, reports added. The South Asian nation is also weighing the possibility ofimposinga 12% duty on steel imports from China. (
Hans India
13-05-2025
- Business
- Hans India
India informs WTO of tariff plan to counter US duties on steel
Undia has informed the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that it proposes to impose retaliatory tariffs on select American goods, to counter the duties on Indian steel and aluminium exports levied by the US as safeguard duties. According to a WTO communication, these US safeguard measures would impact $7.6 billion worth of imports of Indian products, with an estimated duty collection of $1.91 billion. In April, India requested consultations with the US under the WTO's safeguard agreement when the decision to levy the tariffs was announced. The US stance at the WTO was that the tariffs on Indian goods were imposed on national security grounds and should not be regarded as safeguard measures. India, in its notification to the WTO, announced its intent to suspend concessions and other obligations in response to the US safeguard measures on steel, aluminium, and related products, as outlined in a Presidential Proclamation dated February 10, 2025, with the measures set to take effect on March 12. The WTO communication, dated May 9, 2025, was circulated at India's request. It noted that although the US has not formally notified these measures to the WTO, they are effectively considered safeguard measures. "India maintains that the measures taken by the US are not consistent with the General Agreement on Trade and Tariff (GATT) 1994 and Agreement on safeguards (AoS)," it said, adding that as consultations provided for under a provision of the AoS have not taken place, India reserves the right to suspend concessions or other obligations that are substantially equivalent to the adverse effects of the measure to India's trade," India's notification said. Without prejudice to the effective exercise of its right to suspend substantially equivalent obligations, India reserves its right to suspend concessions after the expiration of 30 days from the date of this notification, it further said. While the proposed duties are still at the WTO notification stage, India is also close to finalising a new bilateral trade agreement with the Trump administration.
