The US will review the social media accounts of those applying for student visas.

WashingtonThe Donald Trump administration will reactivate the granting of student visas, but will do so by reviewing the social media accounts of all applicants. According to an internal State Department order, the posts of applicants will be analyzed for "hostility." "Any indicator of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States," states the statement obtained by Reuters. This document does not specify what criteria will guide the determination of a post as "hostile" in the US.

Reviewing social media accounts is not a novelty of this new presidency. Last April, The Department of Homeland Security announced that it would consider "anti-Semitic" publications when denying any type of visa. The new order issued Wednesday by the State Department affects F, M, and J visas, which are the models for exchange students and researchers, and affects both new applicants and those who need to renew them.

This new directive reactivates visa interviews that had been frozen since May 27 and orders embassies and consulates to implement the new criteria within five business days.

The new vetting process should include a review of the applicant's entire online presence and not just social media activity, according to the internal directive, which urges staff to use any "appropriate search engine or other online resources." During the vetting, the order asks officers to look for any potentially unfavorable information about the applicant. "For example, during an online presence search, you might discover on social media that an applicant has expressed support for Hamas or its activities," the text says, adding that this could be grounds for denial.

"For applicants who demonstrate a history of political activism, particularly if it is associated with violence or the views and activities described above, consider the likelihood that they will continue this activity in the United States and, if so, check whether this activity is consistent with the nonimmigrant visa classification for which they are applying. "As Secretary [Marco] Rubio has stated, we do not want to import activists who will disrupt and derail academic activity at American universities."

Clash with Harvard

The announcement comes amid open warfare against Harvard, where in a new escalation, the administration issued an executive order for deny visas to all foreigners who wish to study at the university. The center has already appealed the measure to the courts, and has also sued the administration for financial pressure intended to interfere with the university curriculum.

As the tensions between Harvard and Trump have escalated, the administration has piled up accusations to justify the arbitrary denial of visas to its students, such as accusing the institution of "facilitating and participating in coordinated activities with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), including the harboring and training of Uyghurs."

In late May, the State Department also announced it would revoke visas for Chinese students. "Under President Trump's leadership, the U.S. Department of State will work with the Department of Homeland Security to aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with ties to the Chinese Communist Party and those studying in critical fields," Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a statement.

Still, during the recent call with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump also would have spoken about that ban. According to Chinese media, the president reportedly told his Chinese counterpart that the US "welcomes Chinese students to study" in the country.