Published on 11/10/2025
Burkina Faso accuses Washington of “blackmail” after refusing US request to accept deportees and faces visa suspension.
Burkina Faso’s military government has rejected a request from the United States to accept deported migrants and accused Washington of using “blackmail”, after the Trump administration responded by suspending visa services in the West African nation.
The standoff underscores worsening diplomatic tensions between Ouagadougou and Washington, as the US intensifies its crackdown on illegal immigration and turns to African countries as destinations for deportees.
In an interview on state broadcaster RTB late Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré said he had rejected multiple US proposals for Burkina Faso to receive deported migrants from third countries.
“Is this a way to put pressure on us? Is this blackmail? Whatever it is, Burkina Faso is a place of dignity, a destination, not a place of expulsion,” Traoré said.
Visa Suspension and Diplomatic Fallout.
US embassy in Ouagadougou announced on Thursday that it was temporarily pausing the issuance of all immigrants, tourist, student, and business visas for Burkinabe nationals.
According to the embassy, applicants will now have to travel to the US mission in Lomé, Togo, for visa processing.
Traoré confirmed that he had been officially informed of the move, saying he received a diplomatic note from the United States explaining that Burkina Faso was added to a list of countries whose nationals had allegedly failed to comply with US visa rules.
The note, he said, also referenced the repeated US proposals for Burkina Faso to accept deportees.
“Naturally, this proposal, which we considered indecent at the time, runs completely contrary to the principle of dignity,” Traoré said.
The US State Department said in a statement that Washington remained committed to ending illegal and mass migration and strengthening border security. The Department of Homeland Security has been contacted for further comment.
President Donald Trump’s administration has pursued an aggressive immigration policy since returning to office, seeking to deport millions of undocumented immigrants and secure third-country agreements for their relocation.
As part of that policy, several African nations including Eswatini, Ghana, Rwanda, and South Sudan have already agreed to take in deportees from the United States.
Earlier this week, Eswatini accepted ten deportees despite ongoing legal challenges, following an earlier group of five whom the US described as “serious criminals.”
However, Nigeria has joined Burkina Faso in rejecting the US proposal, saying it would not take in deported migrants from third countries.
Burkina Faso’s leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has styled himself as a pan-African champion and has repeatedly denounced what he calls Western imperialism.
His military government, which came to power in a coup three years ago, has maintained a tense relationship with Western nations, while strengthening ties with Russia and other non-Western partners.
By refusing the US deportee proposal, the country’s foreign minister said, Burkina Faso was upholding its sovereignty and its people’s dignity.
“Burkina Faso is a place of dignity,” Traoré said, reaffirming his government’s position.
The latest diplomatic clash highlights the growing divide between Washington’s migration agenda and West Africa’s resurgent anti-imperialist stance, as countries like Burkina Faso seek to redefine their engagement with global powers on their own terms.
