The United States Tells Others: Do More to Help Syrians

The U.S. government on Friday called on its wealthy allies in the Gulf, as well as rising powers such as Brazil and India, to do more to help refugees fleeing the war in Syria, a call that comes despite the fact that the United States itself has resettled less than 2,000 Syrians since 2011.

“I would like to see more aid come from the Gulf states that are in the Middle East area and are relatively wealthy compared to Jordan and Lebanon,” said Assistant Secretary of State Ann Richard. “We would also like to see more from the so-called BRICs—Brazil, Russia, India, China and, to a lesser extent, South Africa.”

RELATED: A Refugee’s Story: From War in Syria to Poverty in the US

The U.S. announced in September that it was providing nearly US$419 million in humanitarian aid to help those affected by the war in Syria. And Reuters reported on Friday that the U.S. was opening new “screening outposts” in Iraq and Lebanon to make it easier for Syrians to apply for resettlement in the United States.

However, since the start of the conflict the U.S. has resettled just over 1,900 refugees from Syria, a far cry from the millions living in camps and on the streets of Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon.

In 2015 alone, more than 3,400 migrants have died crossing the Mediterranean Sea in an attempt to reach Europe.

#RefugeeCrisis | With all the fuss in Europe, who is really dealing with the influx? https://t.co/wDqiBQwHo7 pic.twitter.com/8cMXtXiIvF

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) November 6, 2015

U.S. President Barack Obama has said he wants to resettle as many as 10,000 Syrians a year in 2016 and 2017, but with roughly 19,000 Syrians already on the resettlement waiting list, that means any more who apply at the new screening centers will likely have to wait two or more years before they can admitted—if they are approved.

Canada’s new Liberal prime minister, Justin Trudeau, said in an interview Friday that Syrians won’t have to wait that long to come to his country.

“The goal is still to have 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada before January 1,” he told Radio-Canada, reaffirming a pledge he made before his party won elections held last month.