President Barack Obama said Friday that the image of a lifeless
toddler who washed ashore on a Turkish beach after he and his family fled Syria
should prompt action from the rest of the world, including the United States.
Obama said every
country needed to do more to help alleviate the crisis, and that the United
States would accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next fiscal year. He
also said the U.S. would try to eliminate some bureaucratic hurdles toward
entering the country.
But the White
House said Friday that certain mandatory steps -- like security checks and
vaccination requirements -- could not be lifted for Syrians looking to enter
the United States.
The wrenching
picture of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi, laying facedown on the sand after attempting
to cross the Mediterranean with his family, has come to embody the humanitarian
crisis unfolding as hundreds of thousands of Syrians flee the civil war in
their country.
"Those of
you that saw some of those heartbreaking images of that small boy drowned, I
think anybody who's a parent understands that that stirs all of our
consciences," Obama told military members during remarks at Ft. Meade,
outside Washington.
As they've
attempted to reach countries in Western Europe, the refugees have encountered
long treks by foot and crowded trains -- and, in some cases, governments
unreceptive to additional migrants.
The migrant
crisis, Obama said, is a product of Syria's civil war, and will only be
resolved when the country stabilizes.
But he added
that the broader problem would persist for decades.
"The reason
is because there are too many states that are not doing well by their
people," he said. "They are desperate and willing to take
extraordinary risks" to achieve better lives.
Climate change,
he said, could also trigger a rise in people driven from their homes.
During the
wide-ranging town call, Obama was questioned by military members about a wide
range of global issues, including recent reports that Russia is escalating its military
presence in war-torn Syria.
U.S. officials
have said it's unclear what Moscow's intentions are as it builds up its troop
levels inside Syria, though Obama Friday pegged the moves to fresh anxiety from
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"It appears
now that Assad is worried enough that he is inviting Russian advisers in and
Russian equipment in," Obama said. "And that won't change our core
strategy, which is to continue to put pressure on ISIL in Iraq and Syria. But
we are going to be engaging Russia to let them know that you can't continue to
double down on a strategy that's doomed to failure."
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