Close X
Wednesday, November 13, 2024
ADVT 
International

Trump Blasts Australia PM Malcolm Turnbull Over Refugee Deal In 'Worst' Phone Call

Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Feb, 2017 12:44 PM
    US President Donald Trump has sparked a fresh diplomatic row -- this time with Australia -- by branding a refugee deal with the country as "dumb", days after holding a heated conversation with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
     
    Senior US officials said on Wednesday that during the call on January 28, Trump blasted Turnbull over the refu­gee agreement and boasted about the magnitude of his electoral college win. Then, 25 minutes into what was expected to be an hour-long call, Trump abruptly ended it, the Washington Post reported.
     
    Trump also told Turnbull that he had spoken with four other world leaders that day, including Russian President Vladi­mir Putin, and that "this was the worst call by far".
     
    Australian government officials, who said the Post's account of the call was "substantially accurate", described the conversation as "robust" and admitted it was "shorter than expected", ABC News reported.
     
    "This is the worst deal ever," Trump fumed during the call, as Turnbull attempted to confirm that the US would honour a deal made with the Obama administration to take in 1,250 refugees from an Australian detention centre off the country's coast at Nauru and Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, according to the Post.
     
    Trump, who on January 27 signed an executive order temporarily barring the admissions of refugees and citizens from seven Muslim majority countries, complained that he was "going to get killed" politically and accused Australia of seeking to export the "next Boston bombers".
     
    During the call, Trump was joined by chief strategist Steve Bannon, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.
     
    At one point, Turnbull suggested that the two leaders move on from their impasse over refugees to discuss the conflict in Syria and other pressing foreign issues. 
     
    But Trump kept his focus on the issue and said: "I don't want these people." 
     
    He also repeatedly mis-stated the number of refugees called for in the agreement as 2,000 rather than 1,250, according to the officials.
     
    Finally, Trump ended the call, making it far shorter than his conversations with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and French President Francois Hollande, according to the report.
     
    The US President returned to the topic late Wednesday night, writing in a message on Twitter: "Do you believe it? The Obama Administration agreed to take thousands of illegal immigrants from Australia. Why? I will study this dumb deal!"
     
    Australia, according to the report, is one of America's staunchest allies. They share intelligence and have fought together in a number of wars, including in Iraq and Afghanistan.
     
    Turnbull, on Thursday, refused to comment on reports of the conversation. He said conversations with world leaders are conducted "candidly, frankly, privately", but stressed Australia's solid relationship with the US was still in place.
     
    "I can assure you the relationship is very strong," he said.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Mexican President Calls Off Us Trip Over Border Wall Spat With Trump

    Mexican President Calls Off Us Trip Over Border Wall Spat With Trump
    Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto on Thursday cancelled his trip to Washington, following US President Donald Trumps order to begin construction on the border wall.

    Mexican President Calls Off Us Trip Over Border Wall Spat With Trump

    First Hindu Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Says She Met Assad On Syria Trip

    First Hindu Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Says She Met Assad On Syria Trip
    The first Hindu elected to the Congress, Hawaiian Democrat Tulsi Gabbard, has said that she met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during a secret, "fact-finding" trip to Syria and Lebanon.

    First Hindu Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Says She Met Assad On Syria Trip

    Indian Businessman To Spend 1 Million Dollars To Help Prisoners In Dubai

    Indian Businessman To Spend 1 Million Dollars To Help Prisoners In Dubai
    An Indian businessman in the UAE has pledged $1 million (Dh3.6 million) to pay off the debts of expatriates who are jailed here, a newspaper reported.

    Indian Businessman To Spend 1 Million Dollars To Help Prisoners In Dubai

    With Senate Okay, Nikki Haley Makes History

    With Senate Okay, Nikki Haley Makes History
    Although she converted to Christianity when she got married, she has continued to attend Sikh religious ceremonies. Her father, Ajit Singh Randhwa, wearing a red turban, sat proudly behind her during the hearings.

    With Senate Okay, Nikki Haley Makes History

    Donald Trump Picks Indian-American Ajit Pai To Head Communications Commission

    Donald Trump Picks Indian-American Ajit Pai To Head Communications Commission
    US President Donald Trump has picked Ajit Vardaraj Pai, an outspoken opponent of new net neutrality, to head the crucial Federal Communications Commission, making him the fourth Indian-American in the administration at the senior level.

    Donald Trump Picks Indian-American Ajit Pai To Head Communications Commission

    Sikhs Seek To Convert Former Church Into Gurdwara In Australia

    Sikhs Seek To Convert Former Church Into Gurdwara In Australia
    With an aim to establish their first place of worship in Geelong city of Australia's Victoria state, Sikh leaders here are seeking to convert a former church building into a gurdwara to host daily prayers and weekly gatherings, the media reported.

    Sikhs Seek To Convert Former Church Into Gurdwara In Australia