Update: After both the United States and Mexico claimed to have had a ‘very good discussion’ to avert President Trump’s tariff threat – and the US weighing a delay over concerns that both sides wouldn’t be able to reach an agreement on all the measures Mexico would need to take to avert them, Mexico showed yet another act of good faith on Thursday – freezing the bank accounts of 26 alleged human traffickers.
The ministry’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) said in a statement it froze the accounts due to “probable links with human trafficking and illegal aid to migrant caravans.” The FIU added that it would present the cases to the Attorney General’s office. -Reuters
Negotiators from both countries are discussing a new framework that would “dramatically increase Mexico’s immigration enforcement efforts” according to the Washington Post.
Mexican officials have pledged to deploy 6,000 National Guard troops to the country’s southern border with Guatemala. We wonder – will Congressional Democrats pounce on Mexico for this decision like they did when President Trump did it?
The Mexican official and the U.S. official said the countries are negotiating a sweeping plan to overhaul asylum rules across the region, a move that would require Central Americans to seek refuge in the first foreign country they set foot upon after fleeing their homeland. Under such a plan, the United States would swiftly deport Guatemalan asylum seekers who set foot on U.S. soil to Mexico. And the United States would send Honduran and Salvadoran asylum applicants to Guatemala, whose government held talks with acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan last week. –Washington Post
In addition to the deployment of the National Guard, Mexico has promised to build more migrant detention centers and checkpoints to catch and deter northbound Central Americans.
Mexico sent representatives to Washington as soon as President @realDonaldTrump announced possible tariffs.
We are expected to have over 1 MILLION people arrive at our Southern Border this year.
Dems are playing games with the border. The president is not!
— Brad Parscale (@parscale) June 6, 2019
One day after US and Mexican negotiators failed to reach a deal to prevent punitive US tariffs from going into effect over border security, Mexican soldiers, armed police and migration officials blocked hundreds of migrants after they crossed into Mexico from Guatemala in a caravan on Wednesday.
According to Reuters, the response from Mexico marks a major step in compliance with President Trump’s demands that the country halt the flow of illegal immigration, primarily from Central America, in order to avoid 5% tariffs which are set to begin on Monday. According to the report, and INM officials told Reuters that migrants were being asked to show papers to show their status in Mexico.