THE United States is considering sanctions, including the imposition of visa restrictions on Nigerians culpable of religious persecution.
This is according to the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who said the move is a response to the alleged violence against Christians in the West African nation.
“The United States is taking decisive action in response to the atrocities and violence against Christians in Nigeria and around the world,” Rubio wrote on his X handle on Wednesday.
“The @StateDept will restrict U.S. visas for those who knowingly direct, authorize, fund, support, or carry out violations of religious freedom. This visa policy applies to Nigeria and other governments or individuals that persecute people for their religious beliefs.”
A policy under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act “will allow the State Department to restrict visa issuance to individuals who have directed, authorized, significantly supported, participated in, or carried out violations of religious freedom and, where appropriate, their immediate family members”.
Rubio said President Donald Trump has made it clear: “The United States cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria, and numerous other countries.”
“This policy will apply to Nigeria and any other governments or individuals engaged in violations of religious freedom,” the US Secretary of State wrote in a statement.
The move is the most recent from the US amid heightened insecurity in Nigeria. On Tuesday, the US Congress held a briefing to discuss President Donald Trump’s October directive and designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), the second time he has done so, following the first one in 2020.
Trump’s declaration was followed by a threat of military action in Nigeria over what the US president described as the mass killing of Christians in the country.
In November, the US House of Representatives held its first briefing over the declaration, days after Trump’s directive. They condemned the rising insecurity in Nigeria and called on the Federal Government to address it.
Since Trump’s move, the Nigerian authorities have rolled out a slew of measures, including a declaration of national security emergency and a directive to recruit more security personnel.
President Bola Tinubu’s government, though denying claims that Christians are being targeted in Nigeria, said it is committed to ensuring the security of the country.
Recently, the president appointed Nigeria’s team for the US–Nigeria Joint Working Group. It was in response to the US’s growing concerns over security in Africa’s most populous nation.