Along with colleagues from the Senate and the House. I sent a letter to President Bush today questioning the progress the administration is making on processing resettlement claims for Iraqis who have worked for us and whose lives have been placed in great danger as a result of such service for us. There is also the larger issue of dealing with the millions of Iraqi refugees in the Middle East. Iraqi refugees are overwhelming the basic infrastructure of Iraqs neighbors. especially Jordan. Syria. and Lebanon. raising troubling concerns about the regions stability and shifting sectarian balances. As Refugee International notes. the Iraqi refugee crisis is essentially exporting Iraqs instability to its neighbors. Beyond the obvious humanitarian and moral dimensions. this crisis has grave implications for our national security interests. our U.S. national security interests. in the Middle East. It is time for us to acknowledge the humanitarian crisis in Iraq that is spilling over into neighboring countries. We must firmly demonstrate our commitment to resettling Iraqi refugees and working with other governments in the Middle East and in Europe to provide humanitarian assistance and support. The Iraqi Government must accept responsibility to care for allallof its citizens and the international assistance needed to improve its capacity to do so in a just manner. Let me conclude by saying how impressed I am. as are all Americans. and I continue to be so impressed by our brave men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan and have returned home to advocate that more be done to help Iraqis and those who are in Afghanistan who are at risk. particularly those who have risked their lives in service to the United States of America.
Keywords matched
Refugee refugee refugees