Why did Donald Trump order a ban on travellers from 12 countries?

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued a total travel ban for citizens from 12 nations and partial restrictions from 7 others countries aiming to bolster national security amid rising concerns. The president cited recent Boulder, Colorado incidents, which authorities attributed to a man allegedly residing in the country illegally, as the reason that promted the swift action.

A total travel ban has been imposed on people from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. Meanwhile, partial restrictions and limited entry is put on nationals from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

According to the White House, these restrictions distinguish between, but apply to both, the entry of immigrants and nonimmigrants.

Why Trump issued the fresh travel ban?

Trump said in a video message, "The recent terror attack in Boulder, Colorado has underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted. We don't want them."

Trump described the new travel restrictions as similar to the “strong” ban he enacted during his first term targeting mostly Muslim-majority countries, which he credited with preventing attacks in the US like those seen in Europe.

"We will not let what happened in Europe happen in America," Trump said.

"We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen. That is why today I am signing a new executive order placing travel restrictions on countries including Yemen, Somalia, Haiti, Libya, and numerous others."

What does the Trump proclaimation say?

The proclamation regarding the travel ban that Trump signed on Wednesday stated, "During my first Administration, I restricted the entry of foreign nationals into the United States, which successfully prevented national security threats from reaching our borders and which the Supreme Court upheld."

“In Executive Order 14161 of January 20, 2025 (Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats), I stated that it is the policy of the United States to protect its citizens from aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, espouse hateful ideology, or otherwise exploit the immigration laws for malevolent purposes.”

Trump stated, "I also considered the different risks posed by aliens admitted on immigrant visas and those admitted on nonimmigrant visas. Persons admitted on immigrant visas become lawful permanent residents of the United States. Such persons may present national security or public-safety concerns that may be distinct from those admitted as nonimmigrants. The United States affords lawful permanent residents more enduring rights than it does to nonimmigrants."

"Lawful permanent residents are more difficult to remove than nonimmigrants, even after national security concerns arise, which increases the costs and aggravates the dangers of errors associated with admitting such individuals. And although immigrants are generally subject to more extensive vetting than nonimmigrants, such vetting is far less reliable when the country from which someone seeks to emigrate maintains inadequate identity-management or information-sharing policies or otherwise poses risks to the national security of the United States," he added.

Trump further noted that the travel ban is subject to revision, and new countries could be added to the list as threats emerge from around the world.