The U.S. Departments of State and of Homeland Security announced on Tuesday that Qatar would be admitted into the Visa Waiver Program, making the Persian Gulf monarchy the second Middle Eastern country to do so after Israel was admitted last September.
Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS that it is “baffling” that the Biden administration would admit a country into the program that is hosting Hamas and Taliban leaders.
“One of the most fundamental requirements of granting the admission to the Visa Waiver Program is conducting a security assessment of the country you’re looking at,” Goldberg said.
“For the life of me, I can’t fathom how you could conclude in a security assessment that having Hamas, the Taliban and other bad actors hanging out in the country, being supported ideologically, financially, politically by that country, that it is appropriate and safe and for the United States to offer that country visa-free travel,” he added.
Hamas and the Taliban opened political offices in Qatar in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Qatar insists that the U.S. government asked it to host those offices and has publicly denied funding Hamas. Doha has long provided money to Gaza and given Hamas leaders safe haven and warm receptions.
Qatar’s entry into the visa program makes it the 42nd country in the world with reciprocal, visa-free travel to the United States. European and East Asian democracies comprise the vast majority of these nations.
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas claimed in the announcement that Qatar’s admission would improve American security.
“Qatar’s participation in the program increases information-sharing regarding one of the world’s busiest travel and transfer hubs, strengthening the security of the United States,” Mayorkas stated. “I commend our Qatari partners for meeting the stringent requirements this agreement entails and look forward to our continued work together on behalf of our respective countries.”
Goldberg told JNS that he doubts whether that information is any different from what the Gulf state already shares with the United States through existing channels.
“Whatever additional intelligence we think we’re collecting in this process, I highly doubt whether A, we aren’t already getting it from the Qataris upon request, or B, that we couldn’t already get access to it without granting the Visa Waiver Program,” he said.
“I think this is being held out as some sort of red herring distraction to claim that there is some benefit for the United States in this,” he added. “Let’s be very clear. The benefit is all for the Qataris.”
Entry into the Visa Waiver Program is a significant milestone for many countries in their relationships with the United States and carries stringent requirements related to reciprocity, the rate of visa denials and law enforcement.
Israel was admitted to the program on Sept. 27, 2023, nearly two decades after it first applied. Its entry was delayed over concerns, including the high rate at which Washington refused visas to Israelis and whether the Jewish state was prepared to offer full reciprocity to Palestinian-Americans.
While the State Department deems Qatar to have met the reciprocity requirements, it noted that Qatar will not admit U.S. citizens who use the “X” gender marker in their passports. Foggy Bottom introduced that marking in 2022 for nonbinary, intersex and gender non-conforming individuals.
It also notes that same-sex relations between men are illegal in the country and subject to lashing as punishment and that there is no legal guarantee of press freedom or freedom of expression in Qatar. (JNS sought comment from the State Department.)
Goldberg told JNS that U.S. national security considerations would outweigh objections to Qatar’s repressive domestic laws in admission to the Visa Waiver Program.
“The red flag that should be a show-stopping moment, where you just cannot provide this status to Qatar, is their hosting of terror organizations and designated terror entities,” he said.
“If they want to end their support for Hamas and the Taliban and other radical Islamic groups, then by all means, come into the Visa Waiver Program if they meet all the other requirements,” he added. “I just don’t understand how you have a Hamas and Taliban exception to the Visa Waiver Program.”