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The US can make it illegal for its citizens to travel to x country. As long as it is legal to visit x county, the US has an obligation to make sure its citizen has been fairly treated by x country's laws...this is done under international treaty. It does not obligate the US to pay ransom or to require x country to treat the US citizen under US law.
Those 3 California "hikers" in Iraq who "accidently" walked over the Iran border. You know, those vacationing 27 - 32 year old freelancing Berkeley social justice people that didn't seem to have any real job history but just were called "students" until they were free.
1. Freelancer who happened to speak Arabic fluently.
2. Female Social justice warrior who happened to be teaching English in Syria because there were probably not enough Mexicans and Central Americans in California that she could teach.
3. Berkeley Environmental guy working in Oregon and who happened to be from a Jewish (no one knew) family.
all who chose to VACATION in Iraq during a war and who thought HIKING in Iraq was a good idea for a vacation. I mean, take the war out of it. Who the heck choses to go hiking in Iraq at the end of JULY?
If I was living in Iran, I'd think they were spies.
ZERO. The United States has no obligation to protect someone who travels outside its borders.
Of course the United States has an obligation to its citizens overseas. That's the very reason for diplomatic relations and foreign embassies!
Nations have foreign relations to protect their own. In nations where none exist, the protection is naturally much more difficult, but as the land of the free, Americans are free to go wherever they want for any reason, and the United States has been hauling its citizens out of trouble ever since the moment we founded our nation.
That's why the Marines were sent into Mexico and Tripoli 200 years ago, and why Egypt just released 2 of our citizens a few days ago.
Another US citizen is caught at the airport when he wanted to leave North Korea after working over there as a teacher.
At what point should people know that they themselves take a huge risk by going to countries known for picking up people for any reason.
How much money should the US government spend on people who take that risk?
Not a US taxpayer dime! The US government puts out advisories on this. At some point, these people have to take personal responsibility for their decisions.
This is how people learn when they act like children and are defiant.
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