US Approves Dispatch of 1,500 Additional Troops to Mexican Border in Anticipation of Migrant Influx

par Idrees Ali et Ted Hesson

WASHINGTON, May 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Defense on Tuesday confirmed it had approved the temporary dispatch of 1,500 additional troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, confirming an announcement to Reuters by a U.S. official. administration of President Joe Biden.

This measure was decided as Washington anticipates a possible increasing influx of migrants to the Mexican border with the scheduled lifting, on May 11, of border restrictions linked to COVID which allow the American authorities to quickly deport migrants from Mexico. a third country, without them being able to apply for asylum.

Joe Biden, who has announced that he will seek re-election next year, has been struggling to stem since his arrival at the White House in January 2021 an unprecedented wave of illegal migration to the southern border of the United States.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the US representative said the additional soldiers will be tasked with supporting the work of border police, without carrying out law enforcement operations, but rather contributing to the work of monitoring and census.

For now, some 2,500 National Guard soldiers are already deployed on the border between the United States and Mexico.

Asked at a press conference about military reinforcements at this border, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that the United States was a sovereign country and that Mexico respected their decisions.

In the past, the American army has already been called upon to contribute to the security of the southern border, in particular during the mandates of Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama.

Troop deployments to the border have traditionally annoyed the Pentagon, whose leaders privately complain that regular missions are more suited to law enforcement agencies and believe the military’s responsiveness otherwise may be affected.

(Reporting Idrees Ali and Ted Hesson, with the Mexico office; French version Jean Terzian)