Philippines to host Afghans awaiting resettlement in US

“The US government is supporting necessary services for those Afghans temporarily in the Philippines, including food, housing, security, medical and transportation to complete visa processing,” the Philippine foreign affairs department said in a statement.

The US thanked the Philippines in a statement by the State Department “for supporting Afghan allies of the United States” and added that it “appreciates its long and positive history of bilateral cooperation with the Philippines”.

Taliban fighters in Kandahar mark the third anniversary of the US’ withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban’s takeover on August 14. Photo: EPA-EFE

The Afghan nationals to be considered for resettlement primarily worked for the US government in Afghanistan or were deemed eligible for US special immigrant visas but were left behind when Washington withdrew from the country as Taliban militants took back power in a chaotic period in 2021.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken first relayed the request to his Philippine counterpart in 2022, and President Joe Biden discussed the request when Marcos visited the US last year, Philippine officials said.

Marcos said last year that he was told by American officials that a maximum of 1,000 Afghan nationals would be allowed to stay in the Philippines at any one time while their special immigrant visas are being processed.

He said at the time there were difficult legal and logistical issues to address for the programme to run as hoped.

Some Filipino officials have expressed fears the Afghan nationals could become targets of attacks while in the Philippines. Others raised legal questions about an arrangement where US authorities would have a say in vetting who could enter the Philippines.

Afghan girls in Ghazni province earlier this month. The Philippine president has expressed concern that Afghan nationals could become stranded in his country while awaiting relocation. Photo: AFP

One prospective problem is what to do with Afghan nationals whose US special visa immigrant application is indefinitely stalled or rejected, Marcos said and expressed concern that thousands of Afghan nationals could be stranded in the country while awaiting relocation to the US.

Marcos has rekindled relations with the US since winning the presidency with a landslide margin two years ago.

In February last year, he allowed an expansion of the American military presence under a 2014 defence agreement in a decision that Beijing warned would allow American forces to gain a staging ground to intervene in the South China Sea and Taiwan and threaten regional stability.

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афганец ожидание переселение принятие продовольствие американский услуга правительство жилье