US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced that he will "permanently pause migration from all Third World countries", a declaration triggered by the recent shooting of two National Guard service members in Washington, DC by an Afghan national. As per a report by AFP, the president said that the move will not only stop future migration but also lead to the full reassessment of millions of immigration approvals issued under the previous Biden administration.
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Trump referred to the situation as “urgent” and said that his plan would entail deporting non-citizens who do not contribute or who raise security concerns, as well as reducing federal benefits available to all non-U.S. citizens. His remarks represent a stark escalation of his second-term immigration agenda, which has focused with growing intensity on hard entry controls and mass removals. Trump said, “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation.”
USCIS orders full review of green cards from 19 ‘countries of concern’
As per a report by the Hindustan Times, at the same time as the president’s announcement, the “US Citizenship and Immigration Services USCIS” issued new policy guidance directing that every Green Card held by nationals from countries labelled as "high-risk" should be subjected to a comprehensive review.
According to a report by PTI, USCIS Director Joseph Edlow said that the directive already took effect for all pending and future applications, beginning November 27, 2025. He added that officers will now consider “country-specific negative indicators” during security checks.
USCIS identified 19 countries under heightened scrutiny
Afghanistan, Myanmar, Burundi, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen. These are the same countries listed in a travel restriction order Trump issued earlier this year.
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What does 'Third World' mean today?
While the term "Third World" is common in political speech, it does not appear in US immigration law. The term was coined during the Cold War, describing countries that were neither part of the US nor the Soviet bloc. Over time, the term has been used informally and often inaccurately to refer to developing or poorer countries. According to the way the administration classifies them, most of the 19 countries currently under review fall into broad categories such as low- or middle-income economies, conflict-affected states, or nations requiring additional security vetting.
