The United States is engaging its partners to help tackle historically high migration in the Western Hemisphere, said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at the recent Washington Conference on the Americas.
Two years ago, President Joe Biden launched the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection alongside 20 partners from across the hemisphere. And together, said Mr. Sullivan, “we are working on three main pillars of that declaration:” addressing the root causes of migration; expanding legal pathways to help replace irregular migration; and promoting stronger and humane enforcement of borders across the region.
“So far, we see our partners stepping up in unprecedented, unexpected ways,” said Mr. Sullivan:
“For example, Latin American and Caribbean countries are hosting more than 80 percent of the nearly 8 million Venezuelan migrants that have fled the Maduro regime. ... The United States is also stepping up our secure and humane enforcement. We’re implementing a new Rule to encourage migrants to use orderly processes for entering our country, including issuing restrictions on asylum eligibility for those who fail to do so.”
The U.S. has also stepped up its screening measures at the southern border and is quickly returning migrants who do not have valid protection claims.
Following a recent conversation, President Biden and Mexican President Lopez Obrador agreed to take concrete steps to improve the migration situation, including responding to migrant surges before they reach the border, said Mr. Sullivan:
“They also agreed to measures that encourage migrants to stay in their communities of origin and dissuade the use of dangerous modes of transportation that expose migrants to violence on their way north. Our joint efforts, with Mexico and with other LA Declaration partners, contributed to around a 30 percent decrease in encounters with irregular migrants at the southwest border last month, compared to the same time last year.”
In spite of challenges, including migration, facing the Western Hemisphere, National Security Advisor Sullivan expressed optimism about the future. “If you look at all the raw material that we have together as a hemisphere, there is no reason why the Americas should not be the most prosperous, democratic, secure region in the world.”
“We have the capital and the capacity,” said Mr. Sullivan. “We have the will. And above all, we have each other.”
