After several top Biden officials visited Mexico to discuss the ongoing migration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, the two countries failed to announce new initiatives to combat the migrant flow.
In a joint Thursday statement, the United States and Mexico reaffirmed their existing partnership to work towards “an orderly, humane, and regular migration” system while working to continue to address the root cause of migration. Meanwhile, the number of migrants encountered at the border by federal authorities in November hit record highs for the same month compared to past years. (RELATED: Biden’s Tenure Marked By Major Increase In Illegal Migrant Entries To These US Territories)
“This includes reinforcing our partnership to address the root causes of migration, such as poverty, inequality, democratic decline, and violence and for the two countries’ initiative for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans,” the statement said about the countries reaffirming their commitment to work on the migrant crisis together. “Ongoing cooperation also includes enhanced efforts to disrupt human smuggling, trafficking, and criminal networks, and continuing the work to promote legal instead of irregular migration pathways. Also, both delegations agreed on the importance of maintaining and facilitating the vital bilateral trade at our shared border.”
President Joe Biden and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador agreed to have the two countries meet again about the migrant crisis in January 2024, the statement read.
The Thursday statement touting the countries’ meeting made no mention of the caravan of nearly 8,000 migrants moving towards the U.S.-Mexico border. (RELATED: Meet The Man Orchestrating The Endless Torrent Of Migrant Caravans Heading Toward The Border)
US Customs and Border Protection officers help immigrants disembark a container after they crossed the border from Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas, on December 22, 2023. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken traveled to Mexico on Wednesday alongside Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to put pressure on the country to help the United States deal with its ongoing migrant crisis. Ahead of the meeting, López Obrador said he would be open to helping the U.S handle its migration crisis if its leaders were open to talks with the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes. The Mexican leader added that he wished to see the Biden administration eliminate or lower sanctions on Cuba and Venezuela or send more aid to migrants’ countries.
“[López Obrador] stressed the need to continue the diplomatic and political engagement with all countries in the region, as well as investing in ambitious development programs throughout the entire hemisphere of the Americas,” the Thursday statement read. “Both delegations underlined the efforts that the Biden administration is pursuing through development assistance and humanitarian aid, as well as advancing new private investments in the region.”
As Customs and Border Patrol continues to encounter a record number of migrants at the border, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the situation at the southern border is “not unusual” during a Dec. 21 press briefing.
“And what we’re seeing here at the border, the migration flow, increased migration flows, certainly, it ebbs and flows,” Jean-Pierre said. “And we’re at a time of the year where we’re seeing more at the border, and it’s not unusual. This is an immigration system that has been broken for decades, and the president has taken this very seriously to try to do more.”