“The executive order signed by President Trump temporarily suspending travel from seven Muslim countries is not only ill thought out, it is dangerous. It is the policy equivalent of pouring petrol on a candle, and shows Trump’s lack of understanding on a wide range of domestic and foreign policy issues. The circumvention of legal and policy norms in the US, and the resultant scenes at airports demonstrate serious potential for a constitutional show down between the executive, legislature and judiciary. The sole purpose of this Executive order is to signal intentions to his political base and deliver what was originally intended to be a "Muslim ban".

“Yet in national security terms, this move should and has, caused great alarm. It is already being used for terrorist recruitment material. It is disproportionate and not aligned with any evidence on the realities around terrorism. Moreover, it has placed the lives of people serving with US and UK forces abroad at serious risk, and therefore those forces themselves.

“Troublingly, this is part of a growing pattern in which the President is eroding US national security institutions and interests, along with the post-World War II international order.”

Dr Oz Hassan

Department of Politics and International Studies

University of Warwick

Contact:

Andrea Cullis: Media Relations Manager, University of Warwick

Tel: 02476 528050

Mob: 07825 314874

E: a.cullis@warwick.ac.uk