US government orders its embassy in Ghana to stop issuing certain visas to citizens

The United States government has placed visa sanctions on Ghanaian nationals for what it said is Ghana government’s failure to accept its nationals ordered to be removed from the United States of America.

A statement issued by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Thursday stated the government of Ghana “has denied or unreasonably delayed” in accepting the illegal migrants.

It indicated that the US routinely cooperates with foreign governments in documenting and accepting U.S. citizens when asked, as appropriate, as do the majority of countries in the world, but stated Ghana has failed to do so in this case.

“Ghana has failed to live up to its obligations under international law to accept the return of its nationals ordered removed from the United States,” Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen said.

Pursuant to her authority under Section 243(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), Mr Nielsen notified the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about the issue of lack of cooperation on the part of Ghana in accepting the illegal migrants.

In response, Secretary of State Pompeo ordered consular officers in Ghana to start implementing visa restrictions on certain categories of visa applicants.

It did however not state the categories that are to be affected by this order.

“Without an appropriate response from Ghana, the scope of these sanctions may be expanded to a wider population,” the statement warned.

It said the sanctions will remain in place until the Secretary of Homeland Security notifies Secretary Pompeo that cooperation on removals has improved to an acceptable level.

The US expressed the hope that Ghana government will work with their officials “to reconcile these deficiencies quickly.”