US President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order that will grant the State Department more powers to punish countries that wrongfully detain American citizens.
Any country that wrongfully imprisons US citizens will incur a “massive cost” and be subject to the type of sanctions more normally applied against rogue regimes, a senior administration official said.
The executive order covers countries that are currently holding Americans as wrongful detainees, “but it also will target countries that are sort of persistent actors who persistently participate in hostage diplomacy”, the official said.
"The bottom line: Anyone who uses an American as a bargaining chip will pay the price," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
Countries like China, Iran, Afghanistan and Russia will possibly be subject to sanctions, the senior official told reporters.
“This is a new tool in our arsenal to bring forth the kind of sanctions that we use in a terrorist state,” the official said.
“Crippling sanctions” could be applied to nations even if Americans are being held not by the government itself but by militant groups in that country.
The State Department does not publish the number of Americans being wrongfully detained overseas.
At least 54 Americans were held hostage or wrongfully detained overseas in 17 countries last year, according to the Foley Foundation. Officials said the Trump administration has secured the release of 72 “detained” Americans since January.
Under Mr Trump's executive order, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be empowered to designate any foreign country as a “state sponsor of wrongful detention” based on their involvement in or support for detaining Americans wrongfully.
Possible sanctions include bans on travel to the US and other measures.
“It's quite easy to get out of the sanctions – by sending Americans back,” the official said.
