Clarification of US envoy's remarks

Several press reports published yesterday inaccurately quoted US Ambassador Mary Ann Peters' comments following her meeting with Foreign Minister Morshed Khan in a way that suggested that Bangladeshi students studying in the US will not be affected by the new immigration registration procedures for Bangladeshi males over the age of 16. This is not what Ambassador Peters stated to the journalists at the Foreign Ministry, said a US embassy press release.

It said that Ambassador Peters told the journalists that "the new procedures will not prevent the entry into the US of bonafide Bangladeshi students intending to study at US educational institutions."

The National Security Entry-Exit System (NSEERS) will affect male students over the age of 16 from applicable countries, including Bangladesh, entering the US on non-immigrant student visas on or before September 30, 2002 and planning on remaining in the United States after March 28, 2003.

Bangladeshi students falling into this category will be required to register with their local Immigration and Naturalisation Service office not earlier than February 24 and not later than March 28, 2003, the release added.