US Inks Deal to Help Panama Control 'Shocking' Migration

Hundreds of thousands of people cross the Darien Gap each year, a perilous 66-mile stretch of jungle connecting the South American country of Colombia and the Central American country of Panama—many of them on their way to the United States. Now, Panama's new leader is vowing to shutter the route, while the US has agreed to take care of the costs of repatriating migrants who cross into Panama illegally, reports the Guardian. "We cannot continue financing the economic and social costs that massive illegal immigration generates for the country, along with the consequent connection of international criminal organizations," newly elected President Jose Raul Mulino said Monday, right before his country's foreign minister inked a "memorandum of understanding" that was also signed by US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Sources say that, per the agreement, Homeland Security workers will be on the ground in Panama to help train officials there on how to determine which migrants need to be sent back to their own countries. The US will fork over the money to pay for charter or commercial flights back home for migrants who are removed. In 2023, 520,000 migrants crossed the Darien Gap; this year so far, nearly 200,000 have. Most of those making the trip originate from Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and even China. Panama, meanwhile, in a statement promises to "comply with all international agreements and conventions on the rights of immigrants and those in refugee status," per CNN.

But "Panama will no longer be a transit country for illegals," Mulino told a cheering crowd on Monday, calling the number of people passing illegally through the Darien Gap "shocking." Mulino said he was especially concerned about the effect such massive migration was having on Panama's environment and biodiversity. "The Darien must continue to be a great green lung, not only for us but for the entire region," he said. "We must defend it and take care of it." The joint move comes as President Biden continues to struggle with perception that he's not doing enough to handle illegal immigration and border security at its southern border with Mexico. "Irregular migration is a regional challenge that requires a regional response," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement, per the AP. (More Panama stories.)