White House Signs Deal With Panama To Crack Down On Major Illegal Immigration Route To US

The Biden administration on Monday inked a deal with the Panamanian government to help stop illegal migration along the Darien Gap, a sign that the country’s new president is following through on a major campaign promise.

The White House announced a Memorandum of Understanding with Panama, an initiative that will deploy American screening officers to assist their government deport migrants who cross the Darien Gap, a vast jungle region between Panama and Colombia that hundreds of thousands of migrants trek across every year en route to the U.S. The announcement followed a pledge by then-presidential candidate Jose Raul Mulino to close Panama off to illegal immigration. (RELATED: Biden Admin Preparing Deportation Protection For Hundreds Of Thousands Of Haitians In The US)

“Specifically, the United States will support Panama’s efforts to begin the swift, safe, and humane repatriation of migrants who do not have a legal basis to remain in Panama,” a White House statement read. “By returning such individuals to their country of origin, we will help deter irregular migration in the region and at our Southern border, and halt the enrichment of malign smuggling networks that prey on vulnerable migrants,.”