Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson, Shafqat Ali Khan, dismissed reports of a potential US travel ban on Pakistani nationals as "speculative" on Thursday, stating that Islamabad had not received any such indication.
A Reuters report from last week, citing unnamed sources, suggested that under a new travel ban from US President Donald Trump, travelers from Afghanistan and Pakistan could be restricted as part of a government review of security and vetting concerns.
Amidst this speculation, Pakistani Ambassador to Turkmenistan, K.K. Ahsan Wagan, was detained and denied entry into the US earlier this week. However, the Foreign Office clarified that Wagan was traveling for personal reasons, was not entitled to diplomatic immunity, and that officials were looking into the situation.
"In response to questions at the weekly media briefing, Khan stated, 'As of now, this is all speculative and does not warrant a response. So far, we have not been given any indication of such a ban on Pakistani nationals.'" He added that both the foreign ministry and Pakistan's mission in Washington were in regular contact with the relevant US authorities to gather more details.
On January 20, Trump signed an executive order directing intensified security vetting for foreign nationals seeking entry into the US. The order required US cabinet members to submit by March 12 a list of countries where travel should be partially or fully suspended due to insufficient vetting and screening information.
The Reuters report also indicated that the new ban could impact tens of thousands of Afghans who had been approved for resettlement in the US as refugees or through Special Immigrant Visas. These individuals, who had worked with the US during the 20-year war in Afghanistan, would be at risk of Taliban retaliation.