Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has received Donald Trump's personal assurance that a deal for the US to resettle refugees from Nauru and Manus Island will go ahead, despite the US President's harsh immigration policies sending shockwaves around the world.
Fears the deal, struck last year with Barack Obama, might be torpedoed by Mr Trump were allayed during a phone call between the Australian and US leaders on Sunday, Fairfax Media understands.
The assurance came as an executive order signed by Mr Trump clamping down on refugees and broader immigration from some Muslim-majority nations caused large protests in the US. It also prompted concern from Australian MPs from both sides, especially over how the order might affect Australian dual nationals.
Mr Turnbull's office declined to comment on the 25-minute phone call with Mr Trump. Fairfax Media has been told the President confirmed his administration would honour last year's agreement, though it remains unclear how many of the roughly 2000 asylum-seekers held on Nauru and Manus Island will be resettled in the US.
Under the Obama deal, final details, including the number to be resettled, were not expected to be nailed down until the second half of this year, after US officials scrutinised applications and carried out security checks.
But news that Mr Trump won't overturn his predecessor's arrangement with Australia means the plight of many refugees who have languished on the Pacific islands for years may finally end.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten welcomed the news, saying: "I'm pleased if the Americans honour their side of the bargain."
Mr Trump's executive order includes a four-month pause on all refugee arrivals, a three-month ban on entry by citizens from seven countries of terrorism concern – Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Sudan and Somalia – and an indefinite halt on all refugees from Syria.
It also prioritises refugees who are fleeing persecution as members of religious minorities in their home countries, most obviously Christians and other non-Muslims in the Middle East and South Asia.
Travellers with US visas and even residency permits were reportedly detained at American airports or prevented from boarding US-bound planes, but Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said her department had received no requests for help from "Australians unable to board transport to the United States".
"The Australian embassy in Washington is engaging with US officials on the potential implications of the suspension for Australian travellers, including dual nationals," she said.
When asked about US legal residents who were visiting Australia and might have difficulty returning, a spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said: "Anyone who is concerned their visa may expire before their return to the US should make contact with the department. The department will assess any applications for further stay based on the merits of the case and in line with the relevant visa criteria."
Neither Ms Bishop nor Mr Turnbull echoed the views of British Prime Minister Theresa May, who said through her spokesman that "we do not agree with" the approach taken by Mr Trump on immigration.
But Australian MPs expressed concern, including Trade Minister Steven Ciobo, who told Sky News: "That's not the position that I support … it's not a position that most Australians would support."
Labor MP Anne Aly, the first Muslim woman in the Australian Parliament and a counter-terrorism expert, said the countries targeted by Mr Trump were not the major exporters of foreign fighters and therefore it made little sense as a security measure.
She said it wasn't a Muslim ban because it would affect many minorities from those countries. Rather it was a "bullshit, conman, snake oil salesman way of trying to make good on his promise of banning Muslims".
Liberal MP and former human rights commissioner Tim Wilson said that "so long as people pass security, health and identity assessments, people should be accepted based on the legitimacy of their claim to be a refugee".
Liberal MPs Jason Falinski and Trent Zimmerman said Mr Trump's approach was not one that Australia should follow.
Labor frontbencher Andrew Giles said he was "so concerned … about the utterances of President Trump because they do seem to be a threat to a rules-based international order".
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