US-Australia refugee deal: Trump

in 'worst call' with Turnbull

A phone call between US President Donald Trump and Australian PM Malcolm
Turnbull has called into question a refugee resettlement deal.
The Washington Post reported Mr Trump called the conversation "the worst by far"
of his calls with world leaders that day, and cut it short.
Mr Trump later tweeted that he would "study this dumb deal".
Struck with the Obama administration, it would see up to 1,250 asylum seekers to
Australia resettled in the US.
Australia has controversially refused to accept the refugees - most of whom are men
from Iran, Afghanistan and Iraq - and instead holds them in offshore detention
centres on the Pacific nations of Nauru and Papua New Guinea.
PM Turnbull had been seeking clarification on the future of the deal after Mr Trump
last Friday signed an executive order temporarily barring the entry into the US of
refugees and people from seven Muslim-majority countries.
What do we know about the phone call?
The phone call between Mr Trump and Mr Turnbull took place on Saturday, and was
one of four the US president had with world leaders, including Russia's Vladimir
Putin.
The Washington Post quotes senior US officials, briefed on the call, as saying that
the conversation should have lasted an hour but was abruptly ended after 25
minutes by Mr Trump.
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Australia asylum: Why is it controversial?
Mr Turnbull was seeking assurances from Mr Trump that the deal would be
honoured.
The US president reportedly said accepting the refugees would be like the US
accepting "the next Boston bombers", who were from the Caucasus region of
Russia.
File photo of asylum seekers holding up identity cards after landing in Manus island
in Papua New GuineaImage copyrightAP
Image caption
These asylum seekers to Australia had their application processed in Papua New
Guinea
The official version of the call from the US was brief, but said both leaders had
"emphasised the enduring strength and closeness of the US-Australia relationship".
On Monday Mr Turnbull confirmed he had spoken to Mr Trump and thanked him for
agreeing to uphold the deal.
US presidential spokesman Sean Spicer has since also said Mr Trump intends to
uphold the deal.
But Mr Trump's tweet on Wednesday - coming after the Washington Post story - has
thrown fresh doubt on the arrangement.
@realDonaldTrump tweets: Image copyright@REALDONALDTRUMP/TWITTER
Mr Turnbull later said he was disappointed that details of the call - which he
described as "very frank and forthright" - had been made public.
He told a Sydney radio station that "the report that the president hung up is not
correct".
What is the deal about?
Australia announced in November 2016 that the US had agreed to a one-off deal to
resettle refugees currently being held on Nauru and Manus Island, in Papua New
Guinea (PNG).
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, would oversee the deal and the "most vulnerable"
would be prioritised, Mr Turnbull said.
No numbers were given and Australian Immigration Department Secretary Mike
Pezzullo later told a Senate inquiry that, while those who were eligible could express
an interest, it was up to the US to decide how many people it wanted to take.
A total of 1,254 people were being held in the two camps, 871 on Manus Island and
383 in Nauru, as of 30 November 2016, according to Australian government
statistics.
Mr Trump's tweet incorrectly labelled refugees as illegal, and recast the number who
might be resettled as "thousands".
Australia refuses to accept refugees who arrive by boat, under a tough deterrent
policy. It has already struck resettlement deals with Cambodia and PNG, but only a
handful of refugees have been resettled. Critics say the two nations are completely
ill-equipped to resettle refugees.
So the US deal was a boon to the Australian government from a close political and
military ally.
Australia has faced fierce international criticism for its offshore detention policy and
wants to close the Manus Island camp. Conditions in the offshore camps have been
roundly condemned by rights groups, who say the policy is punitive and inflicts
harm on refugees.
Who are the refugees?
Official figures show that about 80% of those held on Manus Island and Nauru have
been found to be genuine refugees (those found not to be are not eligible for the US
deal).
All of the occupants of Manus Island are male. By far the largest number are from
Iran, followed by Afghanistan and Iraq. There are also sizeable contingents from
Bangladesh, Pakistan and Myanmar.
The Nauru camp holds men, women and children. Again the largest number come
from Iran, followed by Sri Lanka and those who are stateless.
Some of those being held have spent several years in the camps awaiting a decision
on their fate.