Washington revokes South Sudanese visas amid row

The US is revoking the visas of all South Sudanese passport holders and will stop any more of its citizens entering the country.

- Faisal Ali

The Department of State said South Sudan was "taking advantage of the United States" by failing to comply with US efforts to return people to the east African country, adding that the new measures would come into effect immediately.

Christopher Landau, the deputy secretary of state, said the dispute related to one South Sudanese national and that efforts to "engage diplomatically" with the South Sudanese government had been rebuffed.

"All visa appointments are cancelled, no new visas will be issued, no existing visas will be effective, and hence NO ONE from South Sudan will be entering the United States on a visa until this matter is resolved," he said in a social media post.

Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, said Washington "will be prepared to review these actions when South Sudan is in full cooperation".