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Under the deal signed on Monday, the United States will cover flight costs and provide other assistance to Panama to repatriate the migrants, while the Central American country’s new president pledged to close the dangerous Darien Gap through which migrants cross north.
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas signed the memorandum of understanding on Monday during a visit to Panama to attend the inauguration of new President José Raul Mulino.
The agreement is “designed to collectively reduce the number of migrants who are cruelly smuggled through the Darien River, often on their way to the United States,” National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement.
He added that a mandate to return some migrants to their home countries “will help deter illegal immigration across the region and at our southern border and curb the enrichment of malicious smuggling networks that prey on vulnerable immigrants.”
“Irregular migration is a regional challenge that requires a regional response,” Mayorkas said in a statement.
Shortly after Murino took office, the Panamanian government issued a statement saying that Mayorkas and Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martínez Acha had signed an agreement in which the U.S. government pledged to cover the cost of repatriating illegal immigrants who entered Panama via Darien.
The Central American country said that under the agreement, the United States will provide Panama with equipment, transportation and logistical support to return detained migrants who enter Panama illegally to their countries of origin.
Moulino, 65, the country’s former security minister, has pledged to halt the flow of migrants through the dangerous Darien jungle.
“I will not allow Panama to become a passage for thousands of people who enter our country illegally, who are supported by an entire international organization linked to drug and human trafficking,” Mulino said at his inauguration.
Under the terms of the agreement, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) team will help Panamanian local governments train personnel and develop their own knowledge and skills to determine which migrants can be deported from the country under Panamanian immigration law,” said two senior Washington administration officials.
Both spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to disclose details of the deal, which has not yet been made public.
The United States will pay for charter or commercial flights for deported migrants to return to their countries of origin. Officials did not specify how much Washington would fund the flights or which countries the migrants would be deported to.
Officials said the United States would provide assistance and expertise on how to conduct the deportations, including helping Panamanian authorities evaluate migrants who might qualify for protection. But officials stressed that the United States would not decide who to deport.
Under Panama’s immigration laws, the program would be controlled exclusively by Panama, with decisions made by the government, U.S. officials said, adding that Panama already has a repatriation program in place but that it has had limited success.
The agreement comes as the Darién Gap, located on the border between Colombia and Panama, has become a kind of fast lane for migrants from the Southern Hemisphere and elsewhere trying to reach the United States.
Last year, more than 500,000 people crossed the Darien River, and more than 190,000 have crossed so far in 2024. Most of the migrants come from Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and China.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has been working to show voters it has control over immigration and border security in an election year. Former President Donald Trump, who prioritized immigration during his campaign, has blamed Biden for problems at the U.S. southern border.
Biden announced a new measure in early June to limit access to asylum once the number of people showing up at the southern border reaches a certain threshold. Homeland Security officials attributed a 40% drop in border patrols to the restrictions.
Washington also announced measures to allow spouses of certain undocumented Americans to apply for permanent residency and eventually naturalize without leaving the U.S. Biden’s initiative could benefit more than half a million immigrants.
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