Press Release
☷Senior Administration Officials Previewing the U S Mexico Guatemala Trilateral Ministerial Meeting on Migration United States Department of State
U.S. Department of State ( By Press Release office)
Mar 01,2024
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Hey everyone , welcome to our call previewing the upcoming U . S . - Mexico - Guatemala trilateral ministerial meeting on migration . This call is background to senior administration officials and embargoed until 12:00 p . m . tomorrow . We have officials from the White House , Department of State , and Department of Homeland Security joining us today . We ' ll hear brief remarks from our speakers and then open it up for questions . Let ' s kick things off with [Senior Administration Official One] . Take it away . During the meeting , we plan to announce some important commitments for deeper cooperation . Firstly , Guatemala will host the next Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection ministerial meeting in April . Secondly , we will create a joint U . S . - Mexico - Guatemala operational cell to address migration issues together . Lastly , we will issue a joint statement showcasing our commitment to trilateral cooperation on migration . Now , let ' s hear from [Senior Administration Official Two] for more details . We ' re excited to work closely with President Bernardo Arévalo to further our efforts on root causes , with the help of Vice President Harris and her Central America Forward Initiative . This administration has made significant investments in Central America and has expanded legal pathways for migration to the US . We believe that people should have safe and lawful ways to migrate , rather than relying on dangerous smugglers . We ' ll be discussing expanding labor pathways at tomorrow ' s meeting , as well as increasing collaboration with Mexico and Guatemala on migration management . Thank you for your understanding and apologies for any technical difficulties . Hey , can we go to Tracy Wilkinson from the Los Angeles Times? So , a couple of quick questions . A lot of people think that the Root Causes Strategy has pretty much failed , and the goals you mentioned tonight are basically the same things we ' ve been hearing forever - better governance , human rights , corruption , getting rid of gender - based violence . But let ' s be real , those issues are still a big problem in these countries . So my question is , what else can you guys do? Is there another way to approach these goals? My second question is about López Obrador . He ' s really pissed off at the United States right now . So what are you doing to reassure him and keep him on board with the immigration plans? I know Ambassador Salazar has been going all over the place telling people that the United States isn ' t investigating López Obrador . But what else can you do? And lastly , I heard you ' re asking Mexico to take in more deportees from countries like China and Afghanistan . Is it really fair to ask them to take people from countries so far away? Thanks . We ' re committed to working together on various issues , including tackling illicit fentanyl and arms trafficking and reducing irregular migration flows in the region . We ' re also addressing root causes of migration and improving enforcement efforts . In terms of extra - hemispheric migration , we ' re collaborating with governments in the region to address the routes migrants are taking . Currently , we are not returning nationals of certain countries to Mexico but are working on removals and returns of third - country nationals from other countries . Regarding Mexico being a safe third country , we have not discussed this with Mexico . Guatemala ' s democratic progress is helping us in dealing with migration issues , while concerns about democratic backsliding in Mexico are being monitored . Both countries are strong partners in managing migration . QUESTION: Hi , thanks . This question is for [Senior Administration Official Three] , but others can jump in too . The numbers of border encounters dropped significantly from December to January , and many officials have credited Mexico for their role in enforcing the border , which led to this decrease . Can you give more details on what exactly Mexico did and if they ' re still being as aggressive as they were in January? We have a border with Mexico , so obviously they ' re going to play a big role in anything we do regarding migration . We ' ve had a lot of cooperation and meetings with them in December , January , and ( inaudible ) February . As for Guatemala and the Arévalo government , they ' ve been making efforts to manage their border . For example , they ' re working on addressing corruption within their border police . With support from the international community , they ' re looking to do a lot more under the Los Angeles Declaration . So we see them as a valuable partner not just for migration management , but also for addressing root causes and other issues . As for Mexico ' s actions , I would refer you to the Mexican government for specifics . We have a long history of collaborating on enforcement actions on both sides of the border . In December , we noticed an increase in the use of commercial cargo trains to transport migrants to the border , and Mexico has been addressing this issue with the freight carriers and their enforcement agencies . This has helped reduce flows , especially in more challenging parts of the border for us to enforce . SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: No , that ' s perfect . Thank you . MODERATOR: Okay , we have time for just one or two more questions , unfortunately . MODERATOR: Thanks . Now let ' s go to Rebecca Santana from the Associated Press . Hey , can we go to José Díaz from Reforma newspaper? I ' ve been asking this question a lot and haven ' t gotten any response from the DHS press office . I wanted to know how many people from Nicaragua , Haiti , Cuba , and Venezuela have been deported to Mexico since May 2023 . Do you have those numbers? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL THREE: Sorry , I don ' t have the exact numbers with me . It ' s been thousands of people , but I don ' t have the specifics . I ' ll ask our Office of Public Affairs to follow up . Thank you . MODERATOR: Okay , last question . Lauren Villagran from USA Today . QUESTION: Hi , thanks everyone . About the $4 . 2 billion in the Root Causes Strategy to Central America , I heard it ' s been hard to distribute that money due to a lack of reliable partners . Can you tell us how much of that funding has actually reached Central America , specifically Guatemala under the Arévalo government? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: Thanks for your question . The $4 . 2 billion I mentioned is private - sector investment under Vice President Harris ' s Central America Forward Initiative . Separately , President Biden committed to seek $4 billion over four years from Congress for root causes investment . I can provide more specifics later , but a significant amount has been distributed , not only to governments but also to NGOs and other implementing organizations in all three countries . We do expect to increase efforts in Guatemala with the Arévalo administration as a strong partner . MODERATOR: Alright , that ' s all the time we have . Thanks for joining us . Just a reminder , today ' s call was with senior administration officials and the information is embargoed until noon tomorrow . Have a great evening!
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