Western hypocrisy laid bare in refugee crisis

Today, over 100 million people are being forced to flee their homes, more than any time in recent decades, a dire situation not helped by the Ukraine crisis which is regarded as the biggest geopolitical turmoil after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Calls for urgent humanitarian support are strong. Nevertheless, all that Western politicians could conjure up as a response has been a deaf ear and double standards.

The cold welcome for refugees is plain on US shores. While American politicians are big on dropping numbers, they curiously shy away from talking about how many refugees the country is protecting. For all its unparalleled wherewithal, the world's No.1 economic giant is greatly dwarfed even by countries much less resourced.

According to a September report of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, countries like Poland and Hungary have each received 2.5 million and 1.3 million Ukrainian refugees. In contrast, only 180,000 Ukrainians and Afghans have been accepted into the US, according to the Associated Press. And those refugees are only allowed for a stay of up to two years via a legal process known as "humanitarian parole".

The US does not compare well even with its own promise. Despite a commitment of 125,000 refugee spots in fiscal year 2022, it had resettled less than 20,000 as of late August.

Turning a cold shoulder may have been a calculated move beyond domestic concerns. After all, more refugees thronging Europe will make Russia look bad and Europe a more pliable junior ally.

Across the Atlantic, political opportunists are trying to wring political mileage out of the tragedy. The UK's "Homes for Ukraine" refugee hosting scheme is producing disenchanted hosts and refugees alike six months into its operation: hosts complain about being financially drained and distressed by the burden while refugees have difficulty in meeting their logistic needs such as registration and access to public services.

With more and more hosts intending to quit, warnings are that 50,000 Ukrainian refugees in the UK could be made homeless next year. Politicians, quick to hatch up the scheme for good optics, are dragging their feet in addressing the problems.

Or perhaps this was all part of the plan.

A whistleblower working on the scheme claimed to The Guardian that "Homes for Ukraine" was "designed to fail" in order to limit numbers entering the UK.
And it gets worse. The way Western elites pick and choose whom to let in rekindles a lot of its racist history. Those from Ukraine are said to be preferred over those from places like Syria, apparently because "these people are Europeans" and "intelligent", or in NBC reporter Kelly Cobiella's words, they are "Christians" and "white".

Outrageous as it is, the hypocrisy Western politicians show on the refugee issue is nothing surprising.

What else would you expect from a bunch of self-seeking merchants of chaos whose disregard for the security of others made the Ukraine crisis possible in the first place?

The author is a commentator on international affairs, writing regularly for Xinhua News Agency, CGTN, Global Times, China Daily etc. 

The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

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