After the meeting that President Gustavo Petro had with his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, the Colombian president announced on the morning of April 27 that an agreement was reached to implement specialized family reunification centers for Colombians and Venezuelans who decide to migrate to the U.S. so that this happens in an “orderly and legal” manner.
The announcement was made by President Petro through Twitter. There he assured that these family reunification centers will be located in different parts of the country.
The details of this meeting between the presidents continued on Tuesday, April 25, with the visit of Jon Finer, U.S. Deputy Chief Homeland Security Advisor, who held a meeting with President Petro; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Álvaro Leyva; the Chief of Staff, Laura Sarabia; the Minister of Justice and Law, Néstor Iván Osuna; and the Deputy Minister of Finance, Gonzalo Hernández Jiménez, according to a White House press release.
The details of this meeting between the presidents continued on Tuesday, April 25, with the visit of Jon Finer, U.S. Deputy Chief Homeland Security Advisor, who held a meeting with President Petro; Foreign Minister Alvaro Leyva; Chief of Staff Laura Sarabia; Minister of Justice and Law Nestor Ivan Osuna; and Deputy Finance Minister Gonzalo Hernandez Jimenez, according to a White House press release.
Where will they be located?
The officials also informed that the centers will not be located in U.S. consulates or embassies, but in centers created with international partners. However, they indicate that they are still working on defining the exact number of these.
“The idea is that people will not continue their journey by land. The regional processing centers will give people a legal, safe and regular way to enter the U.S. So (once they apply from there) they will be able to fly (into the country) through those centers,” Voice of America quotes government officials as saying.
Other interested countries
Countries such as Canada and Spain have shown interest in joining the initiative and creating these centers for migrants to access their refugee programs, officials said.
The goal of this initiative is to increase the number of refugees admitted to the United States. In addition to making migration safer, more orderly and humanitarian, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.