British Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled an agreement Thursday that would allow his country to send asylum seekers crossing the Channel to Rwanda.
"From today onwards anyone entering the UK illegally, as well as those who have arrived illegally since 1 January, may be relocated to Rwanda," Johnson said in a speech near Dover in southeast England.
Johnson added that Rwanda - located in eastern Africa - will be able to resettle tens of thousands of people in the coming years.
The British Prime Minister described Rwanda as "one of the safest countries in the world, known globally for its record in receiving and integrating migrants."
Last year, more than 28,000 people from France arrived in Britain across the Channel in small boats, and dozens of them drowned.
During a visit by British Home Secretary Priti Patel to Kigali Thursday, the Rwandan authorities confirmed that they had signed a "partnership agreement" with Britain worth millions of dollars.
Patel spoke about the content of the agreement during a press conference in Kigali with Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Beiruta.
Berrota said Rwanda welcomes this partnership with the UK to host asylum seekers and migrants and provide them with legal avenues for residence, adding that his country's recent history has given it a close link to the plight of those seeking safety in a new land.
Demonstrators in London condemn the agreement that allows the deportation of asylum seekers to Rwanda (Anadolu Agency)
criticism and protests
The agreement announced by the British Prime Minister sparked criticism from the Labor opposition, which described it as immoral.
Simultaneously, demonstrators gathered in central London to condemn the agreement.
On Thursday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees expressed its strong opposition to the agreement, saying that asylum seekers deserved sympathy, adding that they could not be treated as a commodity.
In turn, Human Rights Watch condemned the agreement, saying that Rwanda does not respect basic human rights, and spoke of violations against refugees on Rwandan territory.
In the same context, the refugee organization Detention Action said that people who will be sent from Britain to Rwanda "will likely face indefinite detention under a government known for its violent persecution of the opposition," as it put it.