There have been mixed messages from Washington all week on the state of the agreement. White House spokesman Sean Spicer confirmed on Wednesday that Mr. Trump had agreed to honour the deal.
But a White House statement sent to Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Thursday said- “The president is still considering whether or not he will move forward with this deal at this time.”
The U.S. State Department said in a statement later on Thursday that the United States would honor the agreement “out of respect for close ties to our Australian ally and friend.”
“President Trump’s decision to honor the refugee agreement has not changed and Spokesman Spicer’s comments stand,” the State Department said.
The ABC spoke to senior Australian government sources who said The Washington Post report was “substantially accurate.”
Australian officials said the conversation was “robust” and “shorter than expected,” while one Minister told the ABC that “Trump hates this deal.”
