Geneva, Switzerland - The United Nations said Thursday that refugee resettlement is "life-saving", following a decision by President Donald Trump to suspend all refugee admissions, including of people already approved for entry.

In an executive order signed on Monday, just hours after taking office, Trump said he was suspending refugee admissions as of January 27.

A State Department email to groups working with new arrivals later explained that this meant "all previously scheduled travel of refugees to the United States is being canceled."

Asked for comment, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said it was "currently analyzing the announced executive order in relation to admissions."

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"Refugee resettlement is a life-saving measure for those most at risk, including survivors of violence or torture, women and children at risk, and individuals with legal or physical protection needs," it noted in an email to AFP.

The agency added that it stood "ready to continue our work with the new administration to find solutions for refugees in need of safety, including through resettlement."

Trump in each of his presidential campaigns has run on promises to crack down on undocumented immigration.

The refugee move also targets a legal pathway for people fleeing wars, persecution, or disasters.

The State Department memo asked the UN International Organization for Migration not to move refugees to transit centers and said that all processing on cases has also been suspended.

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Refugees already resettled in the US will continue to receive services as planned, it said.

The order included a call for a report on how to change the program, in part by giving "greater involvement" to states and local jurisdictions, which he said were being "inundated." It also revoked his predecessor Joe Biden's decision to consider the impact of climate change in refugee admissions.

In the 2024 fiscal year, more than 100,000 refugees were resettled in the US, the most in three decades.