WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will open migration facilities in Guatemala and Colombia for asylum seekers heading to the U.S.-Mexico border, in a bid to gradual what’s anticipated to be a surge of migrants searching for to cross as pandemic-era immigration restrictions finish, U.S. officers stated Thursday.
The migration facilities are a part of an intense effort to attempt to forestall hundreds of individuals from making the often-dangerous journey to the southern border when the restrictions finish Could 11.
However it’s unclear whether or not the processing facilities and different measures, together with expedited processing for asylum seekers and crackdowns on human smuggling networks, will do a lot to gradual the tide of migrants fleeing from international locations marred by political and financial strife.
The Biden administration, below assault by Republicans keen to color the border as huge open below his management, has repeatedly warned that the tip of the pandemic-era immigration restrictions doesn’t imply that migrants ought to attempt to come to the U.S. as they’ve additionally sought to open different avenues for migration.
In a name with reporters Thursday, three senior administration officers detailed the migration facilities, in addition to different steps the administration was taking.
Up to now, facilities will likely be positioned in each Colombia and Guatemala, with different international locations to be introduced within the coming weeks, the officers stated. They spoke on situation of anonymity to reporters forward of the general public announcement.