Jason, a Chinese geology student studying at a university in the American Midwest, was stunned when he read the news.
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“I could feel the hostility of the American government and voters toward China,” he said.
“I was angry and confused. I also could not believe language like that would appear in an official announcement from any civilised country.”
Jason’s disbelief was in response to the Trump administration’s declaration last month that it would “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students”.
“We will also revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications from the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
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The policy targets Chinese students linked to the Communist Party and those studying in critical fields, and is part of a push by the US State Department aimed more broadly at restricting international students on the grounds of national security.
Beijing has condemned the US policy, calling it “fully unjustified”.