White House announces 'safe third country' agreement with Guatemala

[tacobell fan]

The acting director for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Guatemala's minister of government signed an agreement that designates Guatemela a "safe third country" for US asylum seekers from Central America. In an official statement, Guatemala's government said the agreement will apply to migrants from El Salvador and Honduras.

[r2d2]

The deal, if it goes into effect, would be one of Trump’s two most important efforts to undermine the asylum system. The other is the Remain in Mexico program, which is forcing thousands of asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their asylum claims are pending in US immigration courts. Combined, the two policies could block the vast majority of asylum seekers who come to the southern border from entering the United States. People who fly or travel by sea to the United States would still be eligible to apply for asylum. (The problem for asylum seekers, particularly those who aren’t wealthy, is that it is often impossible to get a visa to fly to the United States, which is why people turn to smugglers instead.)

 

It is not clear what Guatamela gets in return.. as it has become the leading sending country of migrants to the United States in the recent past..

looks like just another photo op sans any substance/details