The presidents of Mexico and the United States discussed their efforts to reduce the number of immigrants crossing the border between the two countries
Presidents Joe Biden and Andrés Manuel López Obrador spoke Tuesday as a growing number of undocumented immigrants from Venezuela are continually arriving at the US-Mexico border.
The Biden administration announced last week that it would accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants on visas at US airports. Meanwhile, Mexico has agreed to accept Venezuelans arriving in the United States by land who will be turned back at the border.
This new policy of expulsions has already begun to be implemented and is causing concern in border towns in Mexico, where migrant shelters are already saturated, in addition to taking Venezuelans by surprise who were traveling north through the dangerous jungle of the Darien.
The expulsions are being carried out under Title 42, a public health regulation imposed at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic by the Administration of former President Donald Trump (2017-2021).
The White House said in a statement that the leaders of Mexico and the United States discussed “joint migration management efforts, including actions to reduce the number of people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally and to expand legal avenues such as an alternative to irregular migration.
In addition, the presidents discussed security cooperation issues, including joint efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking and new legal tools to prosecute traffickers, as well as their commitment to economic cooperation.
López Obrador said on Twitter after the call that Biden confirmed that he will travel to Mexico for a summit of North American leaders, an in-person meeting that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is also expected to attend.
Earlier Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the US and Mexican administrations were “working on plans for the next summit of North American leaders.”
In December, Mexico will host the North American Leaders Summit, popularly known as the “three friends summit” and which usually brings together the leaders of Canada, the US and Mexico.