Trump Administration To Begin Enforcing Asylum Agreements With Central American Governments

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The Trump administration will soon begin enforcing its asylum cooperation agreements with three Central American governments, allowing the U.S. to send back many aliens who appear at America’s southern border.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in conjunction with the Justice Department, released an “interim final rule” that is set to go into effect on Tuesday. The rule will allow the Trump administration to implement the asylum cooperation agreements it reached with Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador—the countries of origin for many of the illegal migrants seeking protected status from the U.S. government.

Earlier this year, former acting Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan scored asylum deals, sometimes referred to as “safe third country” deals, with the countries that make up the region in Central America known as the Northern Triangle. Generally, the deals require Northern Triangle countries to hold onto U.S.-bound migrants who pass through their countries.

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A Salvadoran migrant passing through Guatemala, for example, must first seek asylum in Guatemala before attempting to apply for protected status at the U.S border. If not done so, the Trump administration can send that individual back to Guatemala. The aim of the deals is to tighten the flow of migrants appearing before the southern border and immediately lodging asylum claims, which has bogged down the U.S. immigration system.

In return, the Trump administration has reinstated hundreds of millions of dollars in economic aid to the Northern Triangle, and pledging to help their cash-strapped governments manage their asylum capacity.

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