NYT: Trump plans to shift US migration policy toward white refugees

The administration of US President Donald Trump intends to fully reorient the country’s migration policy toward admitting refugees primarily from white populations in Europe and South Africa.

Documents obtained by The New York Times (NYT) suggest that the current refugee system — designed to assist “the most vulnerable people in the world” — will be overhauled in favour of a program that “prioritises predominantly white individuals claiming persecution,” Caliber.Az reports.

The report indicates that the focus is largely on white, English-speaking Europeans and South Africans.

NYT claims that the new policy may also cover other native Europeans who oppose their countries’ migration policies and support “populist parties.”

Such individuals could obtain refugee status in the United States if they were “persecuted for peacefully expressing their views, including online.” The paper suggests that members of Germany’s right-wing party Alternative for Germany could fall into this category.

According to the NYT, the draft reform plans were reportedly presented to the White House by the US State Department and the Department of Homeland Security in April and July.

The newspaper adds that the proposal has not yet been finalised.

By Khagan Isayev