But despite the seemingly last-minute changes, all say the effort remains essential and just as urgent.
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“Not all of them yet have exit visas from Lebanon, and we are working really, really hard to expedite that so they can get those exit visas as soon as possible”, McCallum said an interview with Chris Hall, host of CBC Radio’s The House.
International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, shown with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the cabinet minister swearing-in ceremony earlier this month, announced the added aid for the UN.
Trudeau had wanted to resettle 25,000 refugees in Canada by December 31 but faced some pushback following the deadly attacks in Paris.
“It will be a quick release”.
Ottawa is also asking Canadians to help support humanitarian efforts on the ground through the Syria Emergency Relief Fund. It pledged to match dollar for dollar contributions made by individual Canadians to registered Canadian charities. Canadians have until December 31 to make donations, which will be matched to a ceiling of $100 million, officials said.
Officials with both the UN’s refugee agency and the Canadian Red Cross were caught somewhat off guard by the news Tuesday that the original year-end deadline for the program had been tossed aside, along with a plan to process cases both in Canada and in the host countries. “That’s what Canada would have to absorb”, said Dion.
Prime Minister Trudeau says welcoming Syrian refugees to Canada will produce economic and social benefits.
“Our commitment to diversity and inclusion isn’t about Canadians being nice and polite, although of course we are”, he said.
It said McCallum said likely the first group will travel to Canada on a Canadian Air Force plane and the government will also look into the option of leased planes thereafter, but that logistics are still being finalized.
“This funding to UNHCR will help to make these decisions a little less hard by helping to meet basic needs”.
Several European countries, including EU members Slovenia and Croatia and non-members Serbia and Macedonia, have declared they will only allow “war-zone refugees” from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria to transit through their countries on their way to central and northern Europe.
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Bibeau said that since the Syrian crisis began, Canada had committed more than C$969m in funds for humanitarian assistance, development projects and security and stability initiatives.
