An American delegation travels to Mexico in search of agreements to stop migration at the border

Washington – A high-level US government committee travels to Mexico Wednesday to participate in a meeting with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador in search of agreements to stop the unprecedented irregular migration affecting the country.

he County administration She stated that the committee consists of Secretary of State Anthony Blinken; Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas; and White House National Security Advisor Liz Sherwood Randall.

“Secretary Blinken will discuss the unprecedented irregular migration occurring in the Western Hemisphere and identify ways in which Mexico The United States intends to address border security challenges, including measures that enable the reopening of key ports of entry on our shared border, the State Department said.

“Secretary Blinken will affirm the United States’ commitment to the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection, and will highlight the urgent need for legal pathways and other enforcement actions by partners across the region,” a State Department statement said. .

Thousands continue to enter daily

CBP has recorded more than 10,000 migrant encounters daily since August.

The immigration crisis at the southern border of the United States increased during the Christmas holiday, as thousands continue to arrive daily, while negotiations in Congress – now stalled – lead to a possible border agreement that would intensify immigration procedures and would alleviate the burden of immigration. Stopping the mass entry of migrants, in exchange for releasing aid to Ukraine.

The “transformational change” that Republicans hope to achieve at the country’s southern border could begin to take effect in January, when the Capitol resumes its parliamentary activities, if White House staff and senators can make progress in crafting new border legislation – as they have promised – During the presidential election period. holidays.

The convoy is advancing towards the border

While the United States seeks agreements with Mexico and Congress negotiates with the administration to force it to secure the border, more than 6,000 migrants are seeking to reach the border. The migrant caravan that left the border with Guatemala at Christmas continued to drive along Chiapas' roads on Tuesday, calling on the U.S. and Mexican governments instead of tightening immigration policy to provide greater job opportunities for those leaving their countries fleeing poverty or violence. .

The group, which includes about 6,000 people, is the largest formed this year and began walking ahead of a high-level delegation from the United States meeting with Lopez Obrador on Wednesday to agree on new measures to control the growing flow of migrants around the world. region.

The police continued to monitor the convoy's movements with the National Guard. Immigration officials made no attempt to stop them when they passed through the checkpoints.

Immigration programs

The region is witnessing an unprecedented flow of migration that has not been controlled despite the United States' attempts to open new channels for legal immigration, while tightening the consequences of doing so irregularly.

The Joe Biden administration launched several programs known as “humanitarian parole” or “family reunification” to stop illegal immigration and relieve pressure on the border, but they did not achieve this goal.

More than half a million migrants, most of them Venezuelans, have crossed the Darien Forest this year, on the border between Colombia and Panama. Mexico discovered more than 680,000 foreigners in an illegal situation from January to November, according to official figures. In addition, a record number of people have sought asylum in this country, amounting to approximately 137,000 people.

The situation worsened in December on the border between Mexico and the United States when US authorities recorded up to 10,000 illegal crossings per day, an unprecedented number that caused the temporary closure of some crossings.

Mexico requests “more cooperation”

Lopez Obrador admitted that the Americans want Mexico to make more efforts to prevent migrants to the south, on the border with Guatemala, and make their passage through the country more difficult, but he said that it is not only about containment, but also about increasing development cooperation. And solve “political problems” in countries like Cuba or Venezuela that encourage immigration.

The migrants who make up the caravan do not appear to be concerned about the tightening of measures against them.

“I'm afraid to stay in Cuba and die of hunger, and that really scares me,” said Dayron Salazar, a Cuban taxi driver who was traveling with several friends.

“We'll go all or nothing,” said Jose Paz, from Honduras, who was walking with his wife and four children, the youngest four months old and the oldest 13 years old.

On this occasion, the majority of migrants are Central Americans, Venezuelans, Cubans and Colombians, but there are also migrants from African and Asian countries.

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fountain: DLA editorial with information from AP