U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas met with Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard to discuss migration challenges and opportunities for the advancement of economic development.
The meeting included Commissioner Chris Magnus of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar and Mexican Ambassador to the U.S. Esteban Moctezuma, according to a May 3 news release.
Mayorkas "emphasized the need for countries throughout the region to manage their respective borders, extend humanitarian relief to qualifying migrants and repatriate individuals who do not qualify for relief," the release said. "Secretary Mayorkas, Minister Ebrard and other officials discussed tactics and strategies for how the United States and Mexico can contribute to these efforts, most effectively attack the human smuggling networks that exploit vulnerable migrants and prevent individuals from taking the dangerous journeys in the first place."
Mayorkas spoke of the United States' strategy to prepare for the end to the exercise of its Title 42 authority, to be announced May 23 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Title 42 is the Trump-era public health authority used since the spring of 2020 to stem the spread of COVID-19 by holding back the tide of immigrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border to claim asylum,
Mayorkas and Ebrard also talked about enhancing and intensifying efforts already underway to manage migratory flows northward and potential for economic development, job creation, and foreign investment in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and other countries in the region. That would "drive an enduring solution to the decades-long challenge of migration throughout the hemisphere," according to the news release.
