Mexico Takes Action to Stop Migration into US

Mexico has deployed about 25,000 soldiers and National Guardsmen in its border with the United States in an unprecedented effort to stop immigrants from reaching US soil, according to the media outlet.

The version of El Heraldo pointed out that, in addition, there are 19 ships, three fighter jets and four choppers under operation, and it also revealed that the National Guard is planning to deploy soldiers to its southern border with Guatemala to stop the free passage of migrants who are seeking to reach United States.

In this operation, there are members of the National Guard, Army and Navy. The newspaper stated that the Mexican government set up three ‘containment walls’ to slow immigrants.

It detailed that nearly 15,000 soldiers are deployed across the northern border with the U.S.; in the internment routes both in the center.

On the coast and in the line going from the Gulf to the Isthmus there is a deployment of 8 500 soldiers, and in the southern border area, two thousand troops.

However, official sources have reported that a total of six thousand soldiers are being deployed, as other 1 500 troops has been also sent to the southern border with Guatemala.

The federal government, according to El Heraldo, has a containment strategy by sea, and for this reason, the 19 ships aforementioned are patrolling the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

Regarding the containment strategy by air, three fighter jets, two MI17 choppers, one Agusta, and one UH-60M chopper are being used. They are flying over from Tapachula to Chetumal areas, the main migration route for Central Americans.

To such a military deployment should be added 66 agents of the National Institute of Migration (INM), to secure the checkpoints and 425 that are already at the border area.

At the request of the Mexican President López Obrador, the Secretary of National Defense (SEDENA), Luis Cresencio Sandoval, explained that the job of the National Guard is to make migrants eligible to INM, in order to carry out legal permanent proceedings.

“We only stop them. We put them at the authorities´ disposal so they can conduct their respective proceedings, or even let authorities determine what will be ahead for these migrants in the future”, he explained.

In this regard, he considered that if these detention actions are left entirely in the hands of INM, it would not be possible to comply with the commitment and purpose of bringing order to immigration issues.