The Consular Newsletter (November 03-09, 2025)

This week, two French nationals were released from an Iranian prison, while Canada is opening a new consulate in Greenland.

Every Monday, the Consular Newsletter updates consular officials, diplomats, migration lawyers, researchers, and travel industry professionals with the latest major news on consular affairs and diplomatic networks. Keep informed!

---

A. Announcements

• Support consular research by becoming a Partner, Member, or Donor.

• Your organization can sponsor this newsletter. Contact the Center to learn more.

B. Video of the week

C. Consular affairs

Multiple continents

• 5 Indian nationals abducted in Mali; embassy working for ‘safe release’. Press Trust of India

• Arguments for Lai to have access to British consular advice overlook facts. China Daily

• Chrome can now store your driver’s license and passport, but is that safe? Zdnet

• Inside the unpaid mission of Switzerland’s consul in Morocco. SWI

• Month-long consular camps organised by India’s missions in Canada begin. Hindustan Times

• Supreme Court blocks transgender people from updating passports. The 19th

• The ruling about passports isn’t about ID. It’s about social control. The New York Times

• They can take his visa, not his voice. The Paisano

• Two French nationals transferred from Iranian prison to French embassy in Tehran. The National

• What we know so far about Celina Jaitly’s brother’s detention in the UAE. Mathrubhumi

• Woman pays $18 for passport photos – no one prepared for how they turn out. Newsweek

Americas

• “The fight is not over”: LGBTQ advocates challenge Supreme Court’s anti-trans passport ruling. Democracy Now!

• Diplomacy doesn’t shut down: the unseen continuity of America’s consular corps amid a government shutdown. PA Times

Asia

• Bali calls on consular support to promote good behaviour from tourists. The Bali Sun

• Chinese Embassy warns Chinese nationals in Japan to remain vigilant after surge in bear attacks. Global Times

Europe

• Have you had contact with an honorary consul? How was the experience? SWI

• Switzerland expands voluntary honorary consul network. SWI

Africa, Middle East, Oceania, and Pacific Islands

• Stay tuned for next week's newsletter.

---

D. The diplomatic and consular networks database and rankings

• Belarus returns to Slovakia with plans to reopen embassy by 2026. Belsat

• China seeks to construct ‘Super Embassy’ in the heart of London. National Review

• Iran commemorates storming of US embassy with missile replicas, fake coffins. The High Point Enterprise

• Kenya inaugurates consulate in Saudi amid rising concerns over migrant welfare. The Star

• Pak mulls reopening embassy in N Korea amid nuclear fears. The Tribune

• South Sudan’s Nairobi embassy closes due to unpaid rent. Radio Tamazuj

---

E. Passport, visas, and migration fraud

• Canada seeks powers to cancel visas amid fraud concerns from India, Bangladesh: Report. Anadolu Agency

• Fake passport scam: Enforcement Directorate probes into Bengal businessman’s 900 trips to Bangkok. The Hindu

• ID shock: forged Australian passports double in price on the dark web. Cyber Daily

• Retired cop held in passport fraud case. Press Trust of India

• Rs 1.5 crore visa scam busted: MBA graduate caught after months in hiding. Business Standard

---

F. Honorary consuls

• Stay tuned for next week’s newsletter.

---

G. Current honorary consul jobs

• Belgium in South Carolina state, United States (deadline: November 15, 2025)

• Access jobs: link

---

H. Perspectives

• 🛑 “Bring him home” — why the U.S. must release my dear nrother, the British journalist Sami Hamdi (by

  Shaun King
  )

• A dissent worth reading: the Supreme Court and passport sex markers (by

  Charlotte en France
  )

• Becoming a “regular” in a city that isn’t yours (by

  Chelsea Martin
  )

• Blitz interview with Eugene Czolij – Ukraine’s Honorary Consul in Montreal: “Ukraine wants peace – and Russia wants Ukraine” (by

  Two Grumpy Old Men on Ukraine
  )

• Cheaper ozempic, fewer visas (by

  Dan Kowalski
  )

• How a failed yoga retreat sparked a revolution in borderless work (by

  Lauren Razavi
  )

• How America left their own to die in the ‘73 Chilean Coup (w/ John Dinges) (by

  Chris Hedges
  )

• SCOTUS passport ruling leaves trans & non-binary travelers and emigrants in limbo (by

  Elizabeth Silleck La Rue, Esq.
  )

• The passport that says you don’t exist (by

  Debi Jackson
  )

• The visa decision that could cripple rural healthcare (by

  Sam Daughtry
  )

• Welcome to the visa files (by

  Matt Forney
  )

• Why I am an “expat” (by

  Bronwyn Scott-McCharen
  )

---

I. Get daily news

• Consular affairs via Bluesky, Facebook, KakaoTalk, Line, LinkedIn, Mastodon, Substack, Telegram, Threads, Viber, VK, WhatsApp, and X.

• The diplomatic and consular networks database and rankings via LinkedIn.

• Passports, visas, and migration fraud via LinkedIn.

• Honorary consuls via LinkedIn.

---

J. Supporting consular research

The Consular Affairs Center warmly thanks its Partners, Members, and Donors for their support.

Incubating partner: Yonsei University.

Support consular research by becoming a Partner, Member, or Donor. If you are a media professional wishing to contribute to The Diplomatic and Consular Networks Database and Rankings, please feel free to contact the Center.

---

The views expressed are solely those of the author(s), not of the Center.

---