[Mediterraneo10]

> DHS and USCIS aren't idiots; they can tell there's a world of difference between a former Soviet republic(e.g. KZ,KG,UZ,etc) and other -stan countries.

I am a white and Christian European, the sort of person who generally does not get much scrutiny when traveling internationally. Yet quite often when I fly into the USA, the mood of the Customs and Border Patrol officer changes markedly when he notices that I have a Kazakhstan tourist visa in my passport. Since the officer is not allowed to ask you right out “Are you Muslim?”, I once got the indirect question “Did you travel to this country because you sympathize with the belief system of its inhabitants?”

I would hope that DHS staff in offices vetting visas are more knowledgeable about the world, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if they weren’t.

[villedepommes]

I was actually born in KZ and I can't remember even a single time a CBP officer would give me a hard time because of that. Unless you are from one of Eastern European countries meaning you probably have relatives living in KZ or friends, I can see why a tourist visa for KZ has piqued his interest: it's fairly unusual.