According to Newsweek, the United States is detaining Ukrainian refugees seeking entry under a policy that prohibits asylum seekers from entering the United States on the grounds of the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy is different from what many European countries have taken and is contrary to U.S. President Joe Biden's verbal promise to "welcome Ukrainian refugees with open arms."
Infographic
According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) documents obtained by Newsweek, as well as interviews with relatives and immigration lawyers of Ukrainian refugees, U.S. federal immigration authorities detained Ukrainian refugees as they tried to enter the United States to contact their families living in the United States.
It is unclear how many Ukrainian refugees fleeing the conflict have been detained and held by the United States. Newsweek confirmed that at least 5 Ukrainians have been detained. The sources also referred to several other cases that could not be immediately verified, and immigration lawyers said they were aware of more such cases.
Newsweek also found that some official documents show that Ukrainian citizens were detained by the U.S. government, and that the Biden administration has not changed its policy of responding to the outbreak, called Title 42, to truly admit Ukrainian refugees.
U.S. immigration lawyer Jennifer Scarborough said: "Biden's policy has always been to close the border. We have not seen the relevant policy provisions removed, and now we see that Ukrainians have fled and are detained by ICE in the United States. Biden claims they will be warmly welcomed, but that is not the case. ”
The administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump made policies in the early days of the covid-19 pandemic to close U.S. borders to asylum seekers. The Biden administration continued to implement this Section 42 policy on public health issues.
"Refugees from Ukraine have family and friends here who can be contacted, but they are not allowed to enter the United States, which is a big problem," Scarborough said. Unless the Biden administration changes its policy, we expect the number of detainees to increase. ”
Since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the White House has said that if Ukrainian refugees choose to come to the United States, they will receive help. Biden also reiterated the message last week, "We will provide money, food and aid to save the Ukrainians." I will welcome Ukrainian refugees, and if they need to enter the United States, we should welcome them with open arms. ”
The Report mentions that the United Nations said that since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, about 3 million people have fled to Poland and other European neighbors. While many remain in Europe, more and more are travelling to Mexico and then trying to enter the U.S. from the U.S. southern border.
(Edit: DXY)