Turnbull also said that Trump hasn’t asked for anything in return for resettling the majority Muslim refugees from Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The impoverished Pacific countries of Papua New Guinea and Nauru are paid by Australia to keep the refugees in camps.
Turnbull said that it is a deal that Trump wouldn’t have entered into but he has agreed to honor the commitment. Turnbull also said that there would be no link between the resettlement of refugees and any future requests from US seeking military help in the South China Sea or Middle East. Australia is also one of the largest contributors to military campaigns led by US in Iraq and Syria.
US pressure has been resisted by Australia to conduct exercises involving freedom of navigation, close the artificial islands created by China in the heavily contested South China Sea. Turnbull said that they assess all military requests on their merits and that there is no linkage between an argument involving refugee resettlement and other matters. After Australia agreed last year to accept the Costa Rican refugees who were fleeing from drug wars, the Obama administration decided to accept Australia’s refugees.
Meanwhile, the Australia media have described the refugee deal disagreement to be the lowest point in the bilateral alliance since 1973 when Gough Whitlam, the Prime Minister, clashed with President Richard Nixon over a series of bombings which took place during the Vietnam War.
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