The administration of US President Joe Biden announced on Monday that it will double the number of refugees to be admitted to 125,000 in the next financial year, under increasing pressure from people fleeing Afghanistan and other countries.
Biden has put an end to the trend started by former US President Donald Trump to reduce the number of refugees admitted to a few thousand each year.
Trump determined that up to 15,000 refugees could be admitted in this financial year, which ends on 30 September, and in fact received a much smaller number.
After taking office, Biden increased the number of refugees to be admitted this financial year to 62,500. It has now been decided that 125,000 refugees will be admitted in the financial year 2022.
“The State Department today reaffirms our commitment to accommodating refugees in line with our long tradition of providing safe haven and opportunities for people fleeing persecution,” said State Department spokesman Ned Praiss.
“As the world faces unprecedented global human movements and humanitarian needs, the United States is committed to leading efforts to provide protection and promote lasting solutions to humanitarian crises,” said Price.
Washington is trying to help thousands of people who worked for Afghan forces in Afghanistan escape the country and settle in the United States. Some of them will be covered by the refugee program, while others will be covered by the “special immigrant visa” program.
The U.S. authorities, meanwhile, are repatriating thousands of migrants who have crossed the Mexican border with the United States in recent weeks, arriving in the Delrio area of Texas. Many of these migrants are Haitians.
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