U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a waiver for life-saving humanitarian assistance during a 90-day pause in foreign aid while Washington undertakes a review. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a waiver on Tuesday (January 28, 2025) for life-saving humanitarian assistance during a 90-day pause in foreign aid while Washington undertakes a review, according to a State Department memo seen by Reuters.

Just hours after taking office a week ago, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the pause so foreign aid contributions could be reviewed to see if they align with his “America First” foreign policy.

The waiver issued on Tuesday (January 28, 2025) for life-saving aid comes after Mr. Rubio initially gave an exemption on Friday (January 24, 2025) for emergency food assistance.

Mr. Rubio defined life-saving humanitarian assistance as core life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter, and subsistence assistance, supplies and reasonable administrative costs as necessary to deliver such assistance.

“This waiver does not apply to activities that involve abortions, family planning conferences, administrative costs … gender or DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) ideology programs, transgender surgeries, or other non-life saving assistance,” Mr. Rubio’s memo said.

The U.S. foreign aid pause risks cutting off billions of dollars of life-saving assistance. The United States is the largest single donor of aid globally. In fiscal year 2023, it disbursed $72 billion in assistance.

There was initial confusion among U.S. lawmakers, aid groups and the United Nations over the scope of Mr. Trump’s order. That was partially cleared up on Friday (January 24, 2025), when the State Department issued a “stop-work” order for all existing foreign assistance and paused new aid, according to a cable seen by Reuters.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday (January 27, 2025) called for the United States to consider additional exemptions to “ensure continued delivery of critical development and humanitarian activities.”

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was responding to a query on news reports that India is working with the Trump administration for the deportation of some 1,80,000 Indians in the US who are either undocumented, or have overstayed their visas.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

India has always been open to legitimate return of undocumented Indians to their country, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said on Wednesday (January 22, 2025), noting that New Delhi is still in the process of verifying those from the U.S. who can be deported to India and the number of such individuals cannot be determined yet.

“As a government, we are obviously very much supportive of legal mobility because we do believe in a global workplace. We want Indian talent and Indian skills to have the maximum opportunity at the global level. At the same time, we are also very firmly opposed to illegal mobility and illegal migration,” Mr. Jaishankar told a group of Indian reporters in Washington.

“Because you also know that when something illegal happens, many other illegal activities get joined onto it, which is not desirable. It is certainly not good reputationally. So, with every country, and the US is no exception, we have always maintained that if any of our citizens are there illegally, and if we are sure that they are our citizens, we have always been open to their legitimate return to India,” Mr. Jaishankar said.

The Minister was responding to a query on news reports that India is working with the Trump administration for the deportation of some 1,80,000 Indians in the US who are either undocumented, or have overstayed their visas.

“This position is not unique to the United States. I do understand that right now there is a certain debate going on, and a resulting sensitivity which is there, but we have been consistent, we have been very principled about it and that remains our position. I conveyed that clearly to Secretary (of State, Marco) Rubio,” he said.

“At the same time, I also told him that, while we understand all of this, and I also accept that these are autonomous processes, it is in our mutual interest to facilitate legal and mutually beneficial mobility. If it takes 400-odd days of waiting period to get a visa, I don’t think the relationship is well served by this. He (Rubio) also noted that point,” he said.

“But while I’ve seen some numbers… I caution you about them because for us, a number is operative when we can actually validate the fact that the individual concerned is of Indian origin,” Mr. Jaishankar added.