Senior US diplomat backs foreign students, including Chinese

The State Department’s number two diplomat expressed strong support on Wednesday for foreign students in the United States, including Chinese students, less than two weeks after the Trump administration abandoned a plan that would have barred thousands from the country.

“I strongly agree with you on the importance of these student programmes,” Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun told a Senate hearing, acknowledging that there had been “a little bit of turbulence” on the issue.