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The Trump administration is suspending a visa-free travel program for Chinese nationals visiting a US island territory after Republican lawmakers warned it could facilitate birth tourism and pose national security risks.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin’s decision targets a Biden-era program that allowed prescreened Chinese nationals to visit the Northern Mariana Islands for up to 14 days without a visa.
In a notice announcing the decision, the Department of Homeland Security cited concerns that the program could facilitate birth tourism, espionage and illegal onward travel to nearby Guam, a key hub for the US military.
The decision comes after senators Mike Lee, R-Utah, Rick Scott, R-Fla., John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Bill Cassidy, R-La., urged Mullin in April to end the program, warning that it encouraged birth tourism and posed national security risks.
Lee celebrated the decision in a post on X.
“America is not a nursery for the CCP to steal…