Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the US is revoking all visas held by South Sudanese passport holders, accusing the African nation's government of “taking advantage of the US”.

“Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country, including the US, seeks to remove them,” Rubio said in a statement, adding that “South Sudan's transitional government has failed to fully respect this principle”. The US would also prevent entry of South Sudanese nationals.