Reuters
September 20, 2015
A
State Department refugee official said on Saturday that U.S. leaders
are committed to bringing more Syrian refugees to the United States and
that she would like to see
a steep increase in their numbers in 2017.
Anne
Richard, assistant secretary of state for population, refugees and
migration, told National Public Radio the Obama administration would
like to see the refugee process
move more quickly and is trying to streamline the vetting process
without cutting corners on security.
The
United States has taken in 1,500 refugees since the start of the Syrian
war in 2011, and President Barack Obama last week committed to
accepting 10,000 more over the
coming year.
Four
million refugees have fled the four-year-old civil war in Syria into
neighboring Middle Eastern countries and are spilling into Europe in
what has become the continent's
worst refugee crisis since World War Two.
"I
think that the most senior leadership at the State Department, the
National Security Council and the White House want to bring more
refugees and so that's something
that we're very focused on right now," Richard told NPR.
"Well, next year the president has said we will bring 10,000. So the year after that I'd like to see a steep ramp up," she said.
A number of U.S. lawmakers and humanitarian groups have asked Obama to bring in 65,000 to 100,000 Syrian refugees.
U.S.
officials have recognized the process for admitting Syrian refugees can
take up to 18 months, largely because of vetting to make sure they do
not pose a security
threat.
Refugee
applications referred to the United States by the U.N. refugee agency
undergo multiple security checks by several federal agencies.
Richard
said U.S. authorities were looking for ways to streamline the process.
"We can make a home for many, many refugees in the United States — I'm
convinced of it,"
Richard said.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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