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South Sudan has condemned the United States’ sweeping revocation of visas for all its nationals, calling the move unfair and based on a case involving a citizen of another country.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Saturday that the U.S. would immediately revoke visas issued to South Sudanese nationals, citing the country’s alleged failure to promptly accept its citizens who are subject to deportation from the U.S.
But in a statement released Monday, South Sudan’s Foreign Ministry pushed back, saying the individual at the center of the dispute was actually a Congolese national—not South Sudanese. The man was returned to the U.S. after his identity was clarified, and relevant documentation was shared with U.S. authorities, the ministry said.
“The government deeply regrets that despite a history of cooperation with the U.S., South Sudan is now facing a blanket visa revocation due to an isolated incident involving misrepresentation by a non-South Sudanese national,” the statement read.
Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth added that the U.S. appeared to be “trying to find fault in an already tense situation,” emphasizing that no sovereign country would accept deportees who are not confirmed as its citizens.
Tensions are already high in South Sudan amid fears of renewed conflict. The U.N. recently warned that the country is on the brink of civil war. Vice President and opposition leader Riek Machar remains under house arrest following clashes between allied forces and the national army, which also led to a U.N. helicopter being attacked.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau acknowledged in a social media post that the visa dispute involves a single individual—whose identity has not been made public—allegedly certified by South Sudan’s Washington embassy, but later rejected by authorities in Juba.
The U.S. says no new visas will be issued to South Sudanese citizens and that the measures will remain in place until “full cooperation” is restored.
