Trump says deal with Harvard may be finalised over next week

BOSTON: US President Donald Trump has said that his administration is close to finalising a deal with Harvard University and expects it could happen within the next week. 

The two sides have been in dispute over funding cuts and restrictions on international students, but Trump now says talks are making progress.

In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump raised the possibility of a deal with the Ivy League institution, which has filed a lawsuit after his administration cut off billions of dollars in grants to Harvard and moved to block the university from admitting international students.

The Republican president’s administration said its actions against Harvard were justified by a range of allegations, including claims that the university had not done enough to tackle antisemitic harassment on campus.

Trump said his administration is addressing “improprieties” at Harvard. He added that individuals at the university “have acted extremely appropriately during these negotiations, and appear to be committed to doing what is right.”

“If a settlement is made on the basis that is currently being discussed, it will be ‘mindbogglingly’ HISTORIC, and very good for our Country,” Trump wrote.

He made the statement shortly after a federal judge in Boston issued an injunction blocking the US Department of Homeland Security from immediately revoking Harvard’s ability to enrol international students.

That injunction prevents the Department from revoking Harvard’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Programme without first undergoing a months-long administrative process, which it now plans to follow.

Harvard had no immediate comment on Trump’s post, but said in a statement that it welcomed US District Judge Allison Burroughs’ order, adding it “will continue to defend its rights — and the rights of its students and scholars.”

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Harvard has filed two lawsuits to unfreeze around $2.5 billion in funding and to stop the administration from blocking international students from attending the university.

Harvard alleges that Trump is retaliating against it, violating its free speech rights under the First Amendment of the US Constitution, because it refused to comply with the administration’s attempts to influence the university’s governance, curriculum, and the ideology of its staff and students.

Judge Burroughs is expected to rule in the coming days on Harvard’s related request to continue blocking the implementation of a proclamation signed by Trump barring foreign nationals from entering the US to study at the university.

International students make up around a quarter of Harvard’s student body.