Kamala Harris To Visit Mexico, Guatemala Soon To Tackle Migrant Crisis

Kamala Harris said that she will soon visit Mexico and Guatemala as an effort to slow migration to the US-Mexican border.

The US Vice President revealed her plan Wednesday during a press conference ahead of a virtual roundtable she was hosting with experts on the Northern Triangle countries -- El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, reported New York Post.

“The president has asked [Homeland Security] Secretary [Alejandro] Mayorkas to address what is going on at the border, and he has been working very hard at that and is showing some progress,” she said.

“I have been asked to lead the issue of dealing with root causes in the Northern Triangle, similar to what then-Vice President [Joe Biden] did many years ago,” she added.

She also informed that she had spoken with the presidents of Mexico and Guatemala.

Harris said, "We have plans in the works to go to Guatemala as soon as possible.”

She noted that due to Covid-19, her delegation faced restrictions in traveling immediately. Harris didn't share the exact date of her trip, but said it would happen “sometime soon.”

Harris’ office said Wednesday that issues likely to be discussed included “root causes of migration,” as well as “humanitarian assistance, economic development, climate resilience, transparency, and good governance.”

She later took to Twitter to mention that her work in the "Northern Triangle is critically important for the United States and the region." "Today, I gathered experts to discuss the root causes of migration, establishing long-term partnerships, and building a more hopeful future for people in their own communities," she wrote.

Participants in the meeting included Nancy McEldowney, national security adviser to Harris; Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute think tank; and Lisa Haugaard, co-director of the Latin America Working Group nonprofit advocacy group, reported CNA.

Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei said Wednesday his government was likely to reach agreements over migration with Harris during her upcoming visit to the country. "[The US government] will analyse our proposals and the agreements will come from there," he said in a statement.

According to an administration official, more than 172,000 migrants were caught at the US-Mexico border in March.