Donald Trump is preparing to take his hardline immigration agenda global. According to internal documents reviewed by Reuters, his administration plans to push for a sweeping rewrite of international asylum rules at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly.
The proposal would force asylum seekers to request protection in the first country they enter, not a safer or more appropriate one, and would make asylum temporary. The host country would decide when it’s safe to send people back, even if they still face danger. This move directly challenges the post-World War II asylum framework that has offered millions a legal path to safety for decades.
The proposal would force asylum seekers to request protection in the first country they enter, not a safer or more appropriate one, and would make asylum temporary. The host country would decide when it’s safe to send people back, even if they still face danger. This move directly challenges the post-World War II asylum framework that has offered millions a legal path to safety for decades.
Behind the proposal is a familiar narrative: that asylum is being abused and that most migration is economic. This framing ignores the reality of people fleeing war, repression, and climate disasters.
Trump’s approach during his presidency already made this ideology clear, with Muslim bans, family separations, and a refugee policy that openly favored white migrants. Now he is aiming to export that model to the global stage, undermining one of the last standing protections for those forced to flee their homes. Experts warn that if this shift is embraced, it could erase the progress made since the Holocaust and leave countless lives at risk.
Trump’s approach during his presidency already made this ideology clear, with Muslim bans, family separations, and a refugee policy that openly favored white migrants. Now he is aiming to export that model to the global stage, undermining one of the last standing protections for those forced to flee their homes. Experts warn that if this shift is embraced, it could erase the progress made since the Holocaust and leave countless lives at risk.
There is no doubt the current asylum system needs improvement, but dismantling it entirely is not reform, it is abandonment. Refugee protection should not be dictated by geography or political convenience.
If nations follow Trump’s lead, the consequences will be felt by the most vulnerable, from conflict zones to border crossings. What is being proposed is not about fixing a broken system but about rewriting the rules so that no one has the right to ask for help.
If nations follow Trump’s lead, the consequences will be felt by the most vulnerable, from conflict zones to border crossings. What is being proposed is not about fixing a broken system but about rewriting the rules so that no one has the right to ask for help.
