The State Department said today it may consider action to permit refugees and other Europeans on temporary visas to remain in the United States for the duration of the war.
However, the Department termed as “speculation” published reports that holders of visitors’ permits would be permitted to remain in this country. (These reports, published in New York, said cases of foreign visitors would be dealt with on an individual basis, but a liberal policy would be followed.)
Immigration to the United States has come to a standstill and it is not likely that visas will be issued during September, the State Department said today. The American ambassadors in Paris and London asked that visas for immigrants be held up until all American citizens abroad are evacuated from the European danger zones.
As the State Department went ahead with plans for the White House refugee conference next month, Douglas Jenkins, new Minister to Bolivia, conferred with President Roosevelt today before sailing for his new post. Jenkins, former American Consul General in London, is an expert on refugee problems. Bolivia, a country with great natural resources and comparatively sparsely settled, has been considered among possible new homelands for European refugees.
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