What does ‘Third World Nations’ mean? Will Indians be affected by Trump administration’s new green card crackdown?
After an Afghan national shot two National Guard servicemembers near the White House on Wednesday (Nov 26), US President Donald Trump said his administration will conduct a “rigorous” re-examination of all Green Cards issued to immigrants from “every country of concern”.
The director of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Joseph Edlow, said that he has directed a “full-scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern” at the request of the American president.
“At the direction of @POTUS, I have directed a full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern,” Edlow said in a post on X.
“The protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount, and the American people will not bear the cost of the prior administration’s reckless resettlement policies. American safety is non-negotiable,” he added.
What does Third World mean?
In posts on Truth Social, Trump said he will “permanently pause migration” from what he described as “Third World Countries.” But the American president did not specify what he meant by “Third World” and which countries fall in that category.
If we go to the origin, the term Third World was introduced by French demographer Alfred Sauvy in 1952 during the Cold War. He said that the First World comprised the capitalist bloc (US + Western allies), the Second World comprised the communist bloc (then Soviet Union + its allies), and the Third World comprised those not aligned with either bloc (mostly Asia, Africa, Latin America).
However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the term lost its original political intention. In modern times, the term is widely used to refer to countries that are economically disadvantaged or still developing. Although there is no specific list that describes the Third World countries in the modern world.
Which are ‘least developed countries’ as per UN?
At present, the United Nations (UN) has designated around 44 states as Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
As of December 2024, the LDC list includes 32 in Africa (such as Angola, Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zambia), 8 in Asia (including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Yemen), 1 in the Caribbean (Haiti), and 3 in the Pacific (Kiribati, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu).
Will Indians be affected by the new green card crackdown?
No, Indians will not be affected by the new changes for the Third World countries. The question of whether India falls in the category of Third World can not be answered, as Trump did not specify the meaning and context of the Third World. Indians residing in the US will not be affected by this crackdown on green card holders.
These countries are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Burundi, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela and Yemen.
