German Minister Condemns U.S. Move to Ban Foreign Students from Harvard
Germany’s Research Minister, Dorothee Bär, has expressed deep concern over the Trump administration’s decision to bar foreign students from enrolling at Harvard University, calling it a troubling signal for global education and democratic values.
“This saddens me very much,” Bär said on Friday in Brussels, as she arrived for a meeting with her European Union counterparts. “It’s not a positive signal—neither for the younger generation nor for the free world.”
She urged the U.S. government to reconsider the move, describing the policy as “fatal” to academic freedom and international collaboration.
The Biden administration had previously supported the internationalization of U.S. campuses, but President Donald Trump—now in his second term—has taken a hard stance against institutions he claims are fostering anti-American ideologies.
In an April 11 letter, Trump’s administration issued a list of demands to Harvard, which the university refused to comply with. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem accused the Ivy League school of promoting violence, harboring anti-Semitic sentiment, and collaborating with the Chinese Communist Party.
As a result, Noem announced the revocation of Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Programme Certification, meaning international students at the university must transfer or risk deportation.
In addition, the administration had earlier frozen over $2 billion in federal grants and contracts for Harvard, further straining ties between the university and the federal government.
Minister Bär’s remarks reflect broader European concern about the implications of such policies on academic exchange, global cooperation, and the future of international education.
