US colleges would go to hell without Chinese students: Donald Trump

WASHINGTON/BEIJING: In a policy reversal ahead of his possible visit to China later this year, US President Donald Trump told a cabinet meeting at the White House late on Tuesday that he would welcome Chinese students, arguing that the American college system "would go to hell very quickly" without them, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

Trump's U-turn comes amid the ongoing trade talks between Washington and Beijing, where the treatment of Chinese students has emerged as a negotiating issue.

Reacting to Trump's remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a media briefing in Beijing that China "hopes that the US will act on President Trump's commitment to welcoming Chinese students... (and) stop groundlessly harassing, interrogating or repatriating them, and earnestly protect their legitimate and lawful rights and interests".


Currently, about 270,000 Chinese students are enrolled in American institutions, the second largest group after Indians. During the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Trump said the US is "getting along very well with China" and he is also "getting along very well" with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"I think it's very insulting to say students can't come here... You know what would happen if they didn't? Our college system would go to hell very quickly," he said.

Trump said he had conveyed to Xi directly that the US was "honoured" to educate Chinese students, while noting that security checks would continue.

On Monday, Trump said that he would welcome six lakh Chinese students. "I hear so many stories about we're not going to allow their (Chinese) students... to come in. We're going to allow their students to come in. It's very important, 600,000 students," he said.

Takeover of Union Station
Meanwhile, Trump administration is moving to reclaim management of Washington's Union Station, a historic rail hub that federal officials say has deteriorated after decades of fractured oversight. "Instead of being a point of pride, Washington's Union Station has fallen into disrepair. By reclaiming station management, we will help make this city safe and beautiful," US transportation secretary Sean Duffy said on Wednesday.