In an interview with CBS, US Vice-President JD Vance strongly defended Donald Trump's decision to suspend the Afghan refugee transfer programme.
He said that the files of some asylum seekers before entering the United States were not properly vetted from a security point of view, which has raised concerns.
In his first interview with the media since his inauguration, part of which aired on CBS News on Sunday, Vance was repeatedly asked about the suspension of the Afghan refugee repatriation programme and he strongly supported Trump's decision.
"I don't believe that all of these asylum seekers have been properly vetted," Trump's vice-president said. "There is evidence that some of these individuals were even planning to carry out terrorist attacks."
He pointed to the case of Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, an Afghan immigrant living in Oklahoma who was accused of planning a terrorist attack on Election Day, and said that the case showed that the process of vetting asylum seekers was flawed.
Vance added, "Many of these asylum programmes have problems in terms of the quality of the review. We certainly can't let thousands of people into our country without asking."
The CBS anchor said that "these individuals have been investigated". But Trump's vice-president quipped, "Just like the same person who planned the terrorist attack in Oklahoma a few months ago? He was apparently properly screened."
He added that "a lot of people in the media and in the Democratic Party said that he was properly vetted," but "it is clear that this was not the case".
Vance continued, "I don't want my kids to live in a neighbourhood where these people [immigrants] haven't been properly vetted, and because I don't want that for my children, I don't want the kids of other Americans to have to accept that."
President Donald Trump's decision to suspend foreign aid and the US refugee programme has hampered the transfer of more than 40,000 Afghans to the United States. These people have gone through all the required procedures and are ready to fly to the United States.
The Trump administration's decision to suspend the programme has led to the cancellation of many refugee flights, leaving thousands of people in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Albania and Qatar in a precarious position. The cancellation of flights and the suspension of the evacuation of former US military colleagues have drawn sharp criticism from some lawmakers and human rights groups in the United States.
Meanwhile, the US State Department has suspended funding for organisations that help refugees with housing, employment and other needs. In a letter, the ministry said that these organisations should stop all their activities.
Donald Trump's tough immigration policies, which were part of his 2024 election campaign, have left the future of many of these Afghan refugees in doubt.