'Stupid' Australia refugee deal that Trump hates goes ahead

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(CNN)The Australian refugee deal that US President Donald Trump once derided as "stupid" and "horrible" is happening. The first group of refugees being held at Australian offshore detention centers on Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island will leave for the US in the "coming weeks," the Australian government has confirmed in a statement. "There will be about 25 (refugees) from both Manus and Nauru, will be going to the United States and I just want to thank again President Trump for continuing with that arrangement,

" Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in an interview with CNN's Australia affiliate Seven News. Under the terms of the arrangement, refugees selected by the Australian authorities for resettlement in the US are not guaranteed entry into the country. They must first pass a strict vetting process -- which can take months. Australia agrees to pay $70 million to Manus Island detainees

Trump made it clear to Turnbull he was not a fan of the deal during their first phone call following Trump's inauguration in January, details of which were later revealed in a leaked transcript published by the Washington Post in August. "I am the world's greatest person that does not want to let people into the country. And now I am agreeing to take 2,000 people and I agree I can vet them, but that puts me in a bad position. It makes me look so bad and I have only been here a week," Trump said. "This is a big deal," Turnbull responded. "It is really, really important to us that we maintain it. It does not oblige you to take one person that you do not want." "This is a stupid deal. This deal will make me look terrible," Trump said, adding later "I think it is a horrible deal, a disgusting deal that I would have never made."

The deal was negotiated by former US President Barack Obama and involved the transfer of 1,250 refugees from Australia in exchange for a group of Central American refugees from camps in Costa Rica. Towards the end of their phone call, Trump appeared to concede that he would stick with the deal, but he said he would tell the American people that "I hate it."