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West Australian
2 hours ago
- West Australian
Trump says he will help Afghans stuck in the UAE
US President Donald Trump says he will help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates for years after fleeing their country when the United States pulled out and the Taliban took power. Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, Trump's administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the US. "I will try to save them, starting right now," Trump said in a post on Truth Social that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there. Trump cited news website Just the News as saying that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters has not confirmed the report. The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans relocated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the US-backed government during the final stages of the US-led withdrawal. Nearly 200,000 Afghans were brought to the US by former president Joe Biden's administration since the chaotic US troop withdrawal from Kabul. Canada agreed in 2022 to resettle about 1000 of the Afghans still held in the UAE after a US request. It is unclear how many remain in the Gulf country. Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly two million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, the United Nations said last week. Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghan men to Afghanistan amid a tightening of refugee admissions. Some other European Union countries are pushing to tighten asylum rules in the bloc. In the United States, Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government in place since 2021. Refugees include children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the US government during the 20-year war. Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac advocacy group, urged Trump to follow up on his post with action. "President Trump has the authority to do the right thing. He should instruct DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and the Department of State to expedite processing, push for third-country partnerships, and ensure that we never again leave our wartime allies behind," he said in a statement.
Perth Now
2 hours ago
- Perth Now
Trump says he will help Afghans stuck in the UAE
US President Donald Trump says he will help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates for years after fleeing their country when the United States pulled out and the Taliban took power. Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, Trump's administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the US. "I will try to save them, starting right now," Trump said in a post on Truth Social that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there. Trump cited news website Just the News as saying that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters has not confirmed the report. The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans relocated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the US-backed government during the final stages of the US-led withdrawal. Nearly 200,000 Afghans were brought to the US by former president Joe Biden's administration since the chaotic US troop withdrawal from Kabul. Canada agreed in 2022 to resettle about 1000 of the Afghans still held in the UAE after a US request. It is unclear how many remain in the Gulf country. Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly two million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, the United Nations said last week. Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghan men to Afghanistan amid a tightening of refugee admissions. Some other European Union countries are pushing to tighten asylum rules in the bloc. In the United States, Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government in place since 2021. Refugees include children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the US government during the 20-year war. Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac advocacy group, urged Trump to follow up on his post with action. "President Trump has the authority to do the right thing. He should instruct DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and the Department of State to expedite processing, push for third-country partnerships, and ensure that we never again leave our wartime allies behind," he said in a statement.
West Australian
4 hours ago
- West Australian
Melissa Price: PM must be clear-eyed to security threat posed by China
The first duty of the Australian Government is to keep Australians safe and the nation secure. This duty intensifies when the Government declares that Australia is confronting its most complex strategic environment in 80 years. In large part this is because of the rapid expansion of China's People's Liberation Army, which our Minister for Defence has described as the biggest increase in military capability and build-up in a conventional sense by any country since World War II. At such a time, you would rightly expect the Government to not just be talking about the threat, but to be working to make us as strong as possible, as fast as possible. Regrettably, that is not what our Government is doing. The Prime Minister has not budged on defence spending which not only limits our own strategic capability, but has the secondary effect of undermining the backbone of our security policy — our alliance with the United States. The US has served as the guarantor of regional stability since WWII. This role hasn't been limited to our region, and it has been costly for the US taxpayer. The US is currently US$37 trillion in debt and the conflicts in Europe and the Middle East have many Americans asking why America's allies aren't bearing more of the cost burden to guarantee their own defence. This push from the Americans culminated in NATO countries last month committing to lift core defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP and a further 1.5 per cent of GDP on broader defence and security related investments by 2035. The Trump administration has called on Australia to increase our own defence spending and is currently reviewing the AUKUS agreement. I'm a believer in AUKUS and proud to have been part of the team as minister for defence industry who secured it. Obtaining nuclear submarines will serve as a significant deterrent to future attacks on Australia. To ensure the continuation of this agreement, it is imperative we demonstrate that we are a credible ally. This means investing enough to operate and maintain these submarines, while not skimping out on other defence priorities. The Coalition took to the last election a policy to increase defence spending to 3 per cent of GDP over the next 10 years and we are prepared to work in a bipartisan manner with the Government to deliver increased investment. Like NATO we should also strengthen our sovereign industrial base and commit to greater funding to protect our critical infrastructure against attacks including cyber. As shadow minister for cyber security, I understand that cyber security is national security. As the Government's last annual cyber threat report outlined, state-sponsored cyber operations are an ongoing concern. These actors are engaged in intelligence gathering, interference, coercion and are working to gain a foothold within critical networks. Should the strategic environment deteriorate significantly, Australia could face major and disruptive cyber attacks. This is an awkward fact for the Prime Minister to navigate with him last week in China. While they are our major trading partner, they are also the source of our consternation. This was an important trip for the Australia-China relationship, but it could also send the wrong message to our US allies. The Prime Minister should be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. He should advocate for continued trade with China, which is vital for our economic prosperity, particularly here in WA, but he must be clear-eyed about our national security and call out unacceptable behaviour. Reiterating where we stand will send an important message to the US as AUKUS remains under review. This is assuming the Prime Minister's failure to meet with President Trump since the November election, his bizarre John Curtin Oration, and his resistance to increase defence spending haven't spoiled the deal already. If not, there is still a lot of work to be done. While we may not get our first submarines until the early 2030s, US and UK submarines are set to begin rotating through HMAS Stirling in 2027. Our readiness to host these submarines will be an early test and critical in signalling our commitment to AUKUS. State and Federal Labor need to put their shoulder to the wheel to get that part of AUKUS right, otherwise we can almost kiss goodbye having our own fleet of nuclear submarines. Australia is at a crossroads. It is past time the Prime Minister gets serious. Melissa Price is the Member for Durack
