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News > U.S.

US Deal: Troops in Central America to Stem Migration Tide

  • Asylum-seeking migrant children from Central America, who were expelled from the U.S. and sent back to Mexico with their families under Title 42, play on bunk beds inside the

    Asylum-seeking migrant children from Central America, who were expelled from the U.S. and sent back to Mexico with their families under Title 42, play on bunk beds inside the "Kiki Romero" temporary migrant shelter, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. | Photo: Twitter @AbdulsatarBoch1

Published 12 April 2021
Opinion

The Biden administration has taken heavy criticism over its handling of immigration issues, especially the crisis on the US-Mexico border, with ever-increasing would-be migrants on their way to the U.S as the president strives to reverse most of his predecessor’s hardline immigration and border control policies.
 

The Biden administration recently reached an agreement with Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala to help manage the flow of potential migrants on the US-Mexico border, according to Tyler Moran, special assistant to the president for immigration for the Domestic Policy Council.

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According to the official, the Latin American countries have been asked to reinforce their borders by using their military to reduce US-bound immigrants' flow.

“That not only is going to prevent the traffickers, and the smugglers, and the cartels that take advantage of the kids on their way here, but also to protect those children,” the official said.

Moran also indicated that the administration is working on a two-pronged approach to the border situation, with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris said to be developing a “blueprint” that seeks to address “the reasons that people are coming from the region” by providing aid to the countries where the immigrants try to flee, and seeking to improve the processing of unaccompanied minors who have made it into the country.

Republicans and the president’s own support base have been overly critical about the Biden administration´s handling of immigration issues, especially as it concerns the situation on the US-Mexico border, which the White House has been labeling as a “vital human challenge” instead of a “crisis.”

The figures stemming from U.S. Customs and Border Protection have been staggering, showing over 100,000 would-be migrants caught at the border in February, and some 171,700 more individuals in March, including almost 19,000 unaccompanied minors – a new record nearly doubling the 11,861 unaccompanied minors detained during the 2019 migration surge.

The border crisis started shortly after Biden began dismantling Trump’s hardline immigration policies – halting construction of the border wall, moving to end “harsh and extreme immigration enforcement,” and promising to “restore and expand” the asylum system. Other policies have included rescinding the Trump travel ban and promising a “path to citizenship” for 11 million+ undocumented immigrants already living in the US.

The severity of the crisis has apparently pushed the administration to consider walking back at least some of these steps. Last week, the Washington Times reported that Biden was thinking about restarting the border wall's construction to “plug gaps” in the current network of barriers.

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