Mali and Burkina Faso have announced they will ban United States citizens from entering their countries, a direct response to the Trump administration’s decision to add them to an expanded US travel ban list.
In separate statements, the foreign ministries of both West African nations said the move was based on the “principle of reciprocity,” with the new restrictions on Americans taking effect immediately.
Mali’s foreign ministry expressed regret that the US decision was made without any prior consultation and called for “mutual respect and sovereign equality”.
This follows a similar move by neighboring Niger, which also announced a travel ban on US citizens last week after being included in the same US travel restrictions.
All three nations are governed by military juntas that have distanced themselves from Western allies and formed their own regional bloc, the Alliance of Sahel States.
The White House cited national security concerns and deficiencies in information-sharing as reasons for its ban, which is set to take effect on January 1.
