Monrovia — The United States has tightened its grip on countries it deems security risks, placing Liberia on a partial visa restriction list alongside 21 other nations. With a 60-day ultimatum to clean up its act--particularly in passport issuance and internal security--Liberia faces mounting pressure to fix long-standing lapses or risk harsher consequences. The move, authorized under Executive Order 14161 signed by former President Donald Trump, has reignited scrutiny over Liberia's controversial history of issuing diplomatic passports to individuals with criminal ties, a scandal that has plagued multiple administrations with no real accountability.
Liberia has been placed on the Yellow list, meaning its citizens still have some access to U.S. visas but must meet stricter requirements. This is a far less severe designation than the Orange list, where countries like Sierra Leone face sharp restrictions, or the Red list, which includes Afghanistan and others that are entirely banned from U.S. travel.
Washington has given Liberia and other Yellow-listed nations 60 days to correct deficiencies, particularly in passport issuance and internal security. Though U.S. authorities have not explicitly stated why Liberia landed on the list, multiple reports suggest that it stems from years of abuse in the issuance of diplomatic passports--with allegations that they were sold to criminals, including drug lords and money launderers.
Liberia on the Yellow List--Who Else is Affected?
Liberia shares its designation with Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of Congo. Other affected nations include The Gambia, Mali, Malawi, Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea, and Mauritania, along with São Tomé and Príncipe, St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, the Dominican Republic, Vanuatu, and Zimbabwe.
Countries facing stricter restrictions on the Orange list include Sierra Leone, Belarus, Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, Pakistan, South Sudan, Russia, and Turkmenistan.
Meanwhile, the most extreme restrictions apply to Red-listed countries, which are entirely banned from entering the U.S. These include Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Sudan, Venezuela, Syria, Somalia, and Yemen.
The Executive Order Behind the Crackdown
The visa restrictions stem from Executive Order 14161, issued by former U.S. President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025. The order, titled "Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats," directed the U.S. Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Director of National Intelligence to identify countries where vetting and screening processes were so deficient that they warranted partial or full visa suspensions under Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)).
Additionally, U.S. officials were tasked with investigating how many nationals from these countries had entered the United States since January 20, 2021, and whether they posed security risks.
How Did Liberia End Up on the U.S. Visa Restriction List?
Liberia's inclusion on the Yellow list can be traced back to a long-running passport scandal that rocked the nation in 2020. Reports surfaced that Liberian diplomatic passports--normally reserved for government officials and foreign service personnel--had been sold to the highest bidders, including individuals linked to organized crime.
At the center of the scandal was Andrew Wonplo, then Director of Passports at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A U.S.-backed investigation found that criminals, including drug lords, had obtained Liberian diplomatic passports. The fallout was immediate--Washington banned Wonplo and his immediate family from entering the United States.
At the time, Liberia's Foreign Minister Gbehzongar Milton Findley struggled to contain the damage, but the scandal severely impacted the credibility of Liberia's passport system. Legitimate passport holders faced increased scrutiny at foreign airports, particularly in the United States.
One of the most high-profile cases involved Sheik Bassirou Kante, a businessman with ties to the Liberian government. Despite not being a diplomat, Kante was issued a Liberian diplomatic passport. When U.S. authorities arrested him in Maryland for wire fraud and money laundering, they discovered multiple fake identification documents, including his Liberian diplomatic passport.
Court records from Maryland linked Kante to former President George Weah and former Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor. Emails exchanged between Kante and Weah reportedly formed part of the evidence presented in court.
In response, former President Weah ordered an immediate halt to the issuance of diplomatic passports and launched an investigation to determine how many had been issued improperly. However, no findings were ever made public, and no one was held accountable.
During the 2023 elections, the Unity Party (UP)--then in opposition--vowed to investigate the scandal and prosecute those responsible. But nearly two years into President Joseph Nyumah Boakai's administration, no action has been taken.
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Stanton Witherspoon and Others Welcome U.S. Action
Prominent Liberian media figure Stanton Witherspoon, a vocal supporter of President Boakai, has endorsed the U.S. decision to impose visa restrictions on Liberia, arguing that pressure from Washington might be the only way to force reform.
"Donald Trump is proposing visa restrictions, and trust me, I love it. I do love it. It is time we change our ideas and attitudes and stop being bad to our own people," Witherspoon said on his talk show, Spoon Talk.
He accused multiple past administrations of fueling the passport scandal, claiming the issue dates back to former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's tenure and continued under both George Weah and now President Boakai.
"If you can't fix it, other leaders will fix it for you. The passport scandal started as far back as Madam Sirleaf's time. Everybody started selling diplomatic passports. It continued with Weah, and now we are in the 'Rescue Mission' era, and people are still selling diplomatic passports under this government," said Witherspoon, one of the biggest financial supporters of Boakai's election.
