Canada’s new Liberal Government said Tuesday it will resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees by the end of the year and another 15,000 by the end of February.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had wanted to resettle 25,000 refugees in Canada by December 31 but faced some pushback following the deadly attacks in Paris.
Immigration and Refugee Minister John McCallum said they wanted to do it fast but also want to do it right so they are taking a little bit more time to resettle them.
The Government said “robust health and security screening” will be completed overseas and beginning in December, transportation via privately chartered aircraft, with military aircraft assisting if needed, will be organised.
“We will welcome them with a smile,” McCallum said.
“This is a wonderful humanitarian gesture by all Canadians.”
Tuesday’s announcement could raise alarm in the US, where many Republican governors have said they don’t want any Syrian refugees.
The US plans to take 10,000 over the next year.
Germany saw 758,000 refugees and other migrants arrive between January and October. Sweden is expecting around 200,000 this year.
Canada’s commitment reflects the change in government after last month’s election. Former Conservative Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who lost the October 19 election to Trudeau, had declined to resettle more Syrian refugees, despite the haunting image of a drowned three-year-old boy washed up on a Turkish beach that focused global attention on the migrant crisis stemming from the civil war. The boy had relatives in Canada and the refugee crisis became a major campaign issue.
More than four million Syrians have fled their country since the conflict began in 2011.
