Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Thursday that a request for his country to temporarily host a U.S. immigrant visa processing center for thousands of Afghan nationals faces security and other concerns but is still being considered by his administration. A Philippine official said an initial 600 Afghan nationals would be allowed in a “pilot phase” if the U.S. proposal gets approved. 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 U.S. authorities would have a say in vetting who could enter the Philippines. One prospective problem is what to do with Afghan nationals whose U.S. special visa immigrant application is indefinitely stalled or rejected, Marcos said.

Source: The Standard June 29, 2023 19:26 UTC