Australia has announced the immediate¹ suspension of all new asylum² claims by people from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

澳大利亚宣布，对最近所有来自斯里兰卡和阿富汗难民申请立即暂停受理。

Immigration Minister Chris Evans said the decision had been made "in the light of changing circumstances" in those countries.

He added that the move would "send a strong message to people smugglers（走私者） ".

Correspondents say a recent increase in the number of asylum（庇护，避难） seekers arriving by boat has put pressure on the Australian government.

Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are the sources of many asylum seekers in Australia.

Friday's announcement came as news emerged that an asylum boat with 70 people on board had sunk off Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, where Australia has a detention³ centre（拘留中心，集中营） .

'Hardline approach'

More than a 100 boats carrying asylum seekers have been intercepted⁴（拦截） by the Australian navy since the current government came to power in 2007, says the BBC's Nick Bryant in Sydney, and Mr Rudd has been under mounting political pressure over the surge（巨涌，大浪） in the number of boat people.

The immediate suspension on the processing of visa applications from new Afghan and Sri Lankan asylum seekers is clearly intended as a deterrent⁵（妨碍物，威慑） - an attempt to stop the boats - our correspondent adds.

He says the move is being widely interpreted in Australia as a political move to neutralise（使中立，无效） an always sensitive issue ahead of this year's Australian election.

"We have taken a consistently hardline（不妥协的，强硬的） approach to people smuggling⁶ and today's announcements will further strengthen the integrity（正直，诚实） of Australia's immigration system," said Mr Evans.

Boats will not be turned away by the Australian navy and boat people will still be taken to a detention centre at Christmas Island.

However new arrivals will not be able to apply for asylum.

The Australian government says it will review the situation for Sri Lankans after three months, and for Afghans after six.