The executive order issued by President Donald Trump, which temporarily blocks the entry of citizens and refugees from certain countries, does not apply to Malaysians, according to a US Embassy spokesman. On Sunday, the spokesman confirmed, via text message, that Malaysians continue to be free to go to the US, providing they have a valid US visa.
The spokesman went on to say that the US government still has a commitment to ensure the facilitation of legitimate travel for visitors from foreign countries, even while being committed to guaranteeing the security of its borders. The executive order was signed by President Donald Trump on Friday. It effectively suspends the entry of Syrian refugees into the US indefinitely, and other refugees temporarily, for 120 days.
The order also prevents the issuing of US visas for citizens of several other countries. These include Iraq, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Iran, and Libya. Within hours of the order being signed, US visa and green card holders from the nations affected were being barred from coming into the US. But, late on Saturday night, some aspects of the order were temporarily halted by a US Federal Court judge.
The new President has received strong criticism for the issuing of the order, particularly since some countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey, which do business with the Trump organization, have not been included as part of the order, despite being Muslim-majority nations.