(AP) Britain and Rwanda on Thursday faced down two United Nations agencies that have sharply criticized their controversial plan in which Britain expects to send some asylum-seekers from the U.K. to the African country.
In an interview with the Associated Press before meeting top officials from the U.N. human rights and refugee agencies, Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta acknowledged it was “fine that they be concerned,” adding that the discussion was aimed “to bring them on board” to work with the two countries.
The U.N. refugee agency chief, in remarks on Twitter, sounded unconvinced.
Under the plan unveiled last month, British officials said they will send … migrants arriving in the U.K. illegally — often as stowaways or in small boats crossing the English Channel — to Rwanda. There the migrants’ asylum claims will be processed, and if successful, the migrants will stay there.
