US security concerns doesn’t single out India as Trump steps up ‘extreme vetting’

President Donald Trump on Wednesday spoke about tightening the already “extreme vetting process” to those who would like to migrate or travel to the US after New York witnessed its worst terror attack since 9/11 that killed eight people and injured 11 others.

Indian officials said they await the plan the US administration would put in place, which wouldn’t be country-specific, and pointed out that natives from India were not singled out by the Trump government in any manner when he came up with immigration-control measures in the past.

Some experts, too, agreed with this viewpoint but said the measures taken by the US under its sovereign right to improve its homeland security won’t target a country such as India.

“The President spoke again on the same line that he has been talking about on tightening homeland security, immigration and travel procedures to the US. We need to first see what plan Washington would put in place before commenting on the development,” a government source said on condition of anonymity.

The source, however, clarified that India was never singled out by the Trump administration in any manner on security concerns. “We are not among the countries whose nationals are of security-concerns to any other country.”

Other experts agreed with this, but said that the Trump administration would put in place “fresher, tighter” mechanisms that everyone has to live with.

“What the US does in terms of its homeland security, immigration policies and visa procedures are the sovereign right of that country. President Trump has been talking about these issues, including the measures targeting people from certain Muslim countries that were struck down by the courts,” said Lalit Mansingh, former foreign secretary who had also served as the country’s envoy to the US. “Such measures are something everyone has to live with,” he said.