The United States has declared it will start "aggressively" revoking the visas of Chinese university students, prompting criticism from the Chinese foreign ministry.
In a statement on Thursday (AEST), secretary of state Marco Rubio said the State Department would work with the Department of Homeland Security to "aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students".
Rubio said the US would also revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications from China and Hong Kong.
Criticising the US for "unreasonably" cancelling Chinese students' visas, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China had lodged its opposition with the US government.
China's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning has criticised the decision to revoke Chinese student visas. Source: AAP / AP / Liu Zheng
That move was temporarily blocked by a US judge.
Chinese students have long been crucial to US universities, which rely on international students paying full tuition.
China sent 277,398 students in the 2023-24 academic year, according to a State Department-backed report of the Institute of International Education.
International students — India and China together accounting for 54 per cent of them in the US — contributed more than US$50 billion ($77 billion) to the US economy in 2023, according to the country's commerce department.
Rubio's statement did not offer details on how extensively the visa revocations would be applied, but the State Department has broad authority to issue and revoke visas.
Rubio's statement did not detail how extensively visas would be revoked. Source: AAP / AP / Kevin Wolf
Rubio has already trumpeted the revocation of thousands of visas, largely to international students who were involved in activism critical of Israel.
A cable signed by Rubio earlier this week ordered US embassies and consulates not to allow "any additional student or exchange visa ... appointment capacity until further guidance is issued" on ramping up screening of applicants' social media accounts.
