Nobel Prize Winner Says US Revoked His Visa Weeks After He Said Trump 'Behaves Like a Roman Emperor'

Former Costa Rican President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Óscar Arias Sánchez said that the United States revoked his visa without explanation.

Arias, who has been openly critical of the Trump administration, said he received an email informing him of the decision but was not given a clear reason. However, he linked it with criticism of President Donald Trump.

"I don't know why they have revoked my visa," Arias said at a news conference in San José, as The New York Times reports. "I don't know if the revoking of my visa is some sort of punishment because I say what I think," added Arias, who clarified that he had no immediate plans to travel to the United States.

Arias, who served as Costa Rica's president from 1986 to 1990 and again between 2006 and 2010, has criticized U.S. foreign policy and the Trump administration's approach to international relations, most notably on a February Facebook post in which he wrote that Trump "behaves like a Roman emperor, telling the rest of the world what to do."

He also expressed concerns about the United States' growing tensions with China, arguing that the U.S. has historically sought enemies to justify its military spending:

"I have always believed that the United States is 'a nation in search of an enemy.' Today, that enemy is China. Having a supposed enemy has allowed them to fuel the arms industry and justify spending a trillion dollars (a trillion in U.S. terms) on weapons and soldiers"

The U.S. State Department has not commented on the decision, and the Costa Rican government has also remained silent, but Arias is not the only Costa Rican political figure who has recently had his U.S. visa revoked. In February, the visas of three Costa Rican lawmakers and a state-owned telecommunications agency official were rescinded after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited the country, as reported by Reuters.

These individuals had been accused by political opponents of supporting Chinese telecom company Huawei in its bid for contracts in Costa Rica's 5G network development.

During his visit Rubio commended Costa Rica for blocking Chinese companies from participating in the 5G rollout and warned of potential sanctions for officials cooperating with foreign entities deemed a cybersecurity risk to the United States. Costa Rica also became at the time one of the first countries to commit to receiving U.S. deported migrants from third countries.

The revocation of Arias' vosa follows broader trends within the Trump administration, which has taken action against foreign nationals based on their political views. A recent diplomatic directive allows for visa denials based on "hostile attitudes" toward the U.S. or its policies. Rubio has stated that he has signed more than 300 letters revoking visas for individuals, including students and visitors, for reasons related to their political positions, largely accusing them of supporting Hamas, or alleged criminal activity.

Arias concluded his press conference by stating that he would not be deterred from expressing his views. "If someone wants to punish me in the hopes of silencing me, that isn't going to work," he said.