President Biden will announce later today that the United States will accept 100,000 Ukrainian refugees. A senior administration official confirmed the news this morning.
WATCH:
Biden is in Brussels today meeting with European leaders to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
Since the Russian invasion, 3.5 million Ukrainians have fled the war-torn country. Most have gone to neighboring Poland.
Russian airstrikes and artillery barrages have repeatedly targeted urban centers.
The New York Times reports:
United States officials have repeatedly said they expect that most Ukrainian refugees will want to stay in Europe, close to their homes. But President Biden, who is in Brussels for three back-to-back summits with allies, is expected to announce that the administration will accept 100,000 refugees who want to come to America.
It is not clear what legal path those refugees will take. Officials said some might be welcomed under the United States' formal refugee program. Others may be given visas or be granted “humanitarian parole,” a form of entry often given to people fleeing violence or war in countries around the world.
The White House has begun making special efforts to expand existing refugee programs with an emphasis on reuniting displaced Ukrainians with relatives already living in the United States.
CNN has more the administration's plan:
The official said the White House will not have to ask Congress to expand the current cap on annual refugees, which is set at 125,000 for fiscal year 2022, because it is more of a “long-term commitment” and there will be other avenues for many of those Ukrainians to enter the United States.
“We still have a significant capacity within the 125,000 so we don't currently envision the need to go beyond that,” the official said.
For every Ukraine refugee deport an illegal entering our southern border!