US visa applicants to provide their social media details
Washington: Nearly all applicants of US visas will have to provide information on their use of social media under the new rules adopted to enhance vetting of foreign nationals seeking entry into America.
The State Department adopted a new policy on Saturday under which most visa applicants, including temporary visitors, will be required to list their social media identifiers in a drop down menu along with other personal information.
Applicants will have the option to say that they do not use social media if that is the case.
If a visa applicant lies about social media use, they could face "serious immigration consequences" as a result, a US Department of State official told Hill.TV.
For now, the drop down menu only includes major social media websites, but the applicants soon will be able to list all sites that they use.
This is a critical step forward in establishing enhanced vetting of foreign nationals seeking entry into the United States," the official told Hill.TV.
"As we've seen around the world in recent years, social media can be a major forum for terrorist sentiment and activity. This will be a vital tool to screen out terrorists, public safety threats, and other dangerous individuals from gaining immigration benefits and setting foot on US soil."
The social media identifiers will be incorporated into a background check review against watchlists generated by the US government. Applicants will also be required in the future to turn more extensive information on their travel history.
The policy stems from a March 2017 executive order issued by President Donald Trump intended to put "extreme vetting" into place. The State Department published its intent to implement the policy in March 2018.
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Not too many more vibrant democracies in the world than India: White House
Washington (PTI): There are not too many more vibrant democracies in the world than India, the White House has said, applauding the people of India for exercising their right to vote.
White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby was responding to a question on the ongoing Indian elections in which more than 969 million people are exercising their right to franchise at one million polling stations to elect 545 Members of Parliament from thousands of candidates representing as many as 2,660 registered political parties.
The voting will conclude on June 1. The votes will be counted and the results will be declared on June 4.
“Not too many more vibrant democracies in the world than India. And we applaud the Indian people for exercising, you know, their ability to vote, and to have a voice in their future government. And we wish them well throughout the process, of course,” Kirby told reporters at a news conference here.
Responding to another question, Kirby said the India-US relationship has strengthened under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in particular during the last three years of the Biden administration.
“Our relationship with India is extremely close and getting closer,” he said.
“You saw it on a State Visit (last June). We launched all kinds of new initiatives, working on critical emerging technologies together, and bolstering and expanding the relevance of the Indo-Pacific quad, of course, which India is a part of. And then, just the people-to-people exchanges, and the military that we share with India,” Kirby said.
It's a very vibrant, very active partnership, he said.
"We are grateful for Prime Minister Modi's leadership,” said the senior White House official.
When asked if President Joe Biden believes that India and Japan are xenophobic countries, he replied in the negative and said the president was making a broader point.
“I mean, the president was making a broader point here about the vibrancy of our own democracy, here in the United States, and how inclusive and participatory it is,” Kirby said.
Biden earlier this month had called Japan and India "xenophobic", grouping them with Russia and China as countries that "don't want immigrants".
