Additional Coverage:
- US diplomat warns of great consequences for migrants at border who don’t choose legal pathways (newsbreak.com)
In a recent press conference at his residence in Mexico City, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, issued a stern warning on June 13, 2024, advising migrants against entering the U.S. through illegal means.
Salazar emphasized that any migrant not following legal procedures would face severe repercussions, including being sent back to their country of origin and a five-year ban from entering the United States. This statement aligns with the Biden administration’s plea for Mexico’s assistance in managing the surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Salazar highlighted a notable decrease in migrant arrivals following President Joe Biden’s recent policy changes aimed at tightening asylum eligibility. These changes were enacted in response to the significant daily numbers of migrant encounters, which had previously exceeded 4,000, but specific figures on the decrease were not provided.
Under the new regulations, the U.S. will limit asylum processing if migrant encounters at non-port entry points exceed 2,500 a day, a threshold surpassed at the time of the executive order’s immediate implementation.
The policy revision has garnered criticism from civil rights advocates, with a group of immigrant rights organizations filing a lawsuit against it, claiming it barely differs from previous attempts by the Trump administration that courts had blocked.
Mexican authorities have responded by detaining migrants, including those turned away by the U.S., and relocating them to cities like Villahermosa and Tapachula to deter northward migration attempts.
The U.N. refugee agency’s chief also voiced concerns that the policy might infringe upon international refugee protection laws.
Immigration policies and cooperation objectives were discussed in a conversation between U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Mexico’s President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, as Harris congratulated Sheinbaum on her victory. According to Salazar, the U.S. aims to strengthen its ties with Mexico across various fronts, emphasizing their relationship as neighbors and economic allies.
While Salazar refrained from commenting on the contentious judicial reforms proposed by outgoing Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Brian Nichols, U.S. assistant secretary for the Western Hemisphere, called for transparency regarding the reforms’ potential impact on U.S. investors and corporations. Salazar acknowledged the importance of a robust judicial system but maintained that any reforms should be determined by the Mexican populace.
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