Status: 09.01.2023 4:06 p.m
The United States has been experiencing an influx of migrants for some time. This puts US President Biden under increasing pressure. Now he has traveled to Mexico – it is his first visit to the neighboring country since taking office.
During a visit to Mexico, US President Joe Biden promoted common solutions with the southern neighboring country in migration policy. All sides could work together to “repair the broken system,” Biden said on Twitter after his arrival in Mexico City. It is Biden’s first visit to Mexico since he took office almost two years ago.
Biden inspected the border wall
During his several-hour visit to the city of El Paso on Sunday, Biden met border officials and inspected the border wall with Mexico. Earlier, the Democrat was greeted coolly by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott at the border city airport. The Republican handed Biden a letter in which he made serious allegations against the government. The visit comes two years too late, Biden’s “failure” is responsible for the “chaos” at the border.
The main issue is migration
After the flying visit to El Paso, Biden traveled on to Mexico. His Mexican colleague Andrés Manuel López Obrador received him at Felipe Ángeles Airport north of Mexico City. The two heads of state then drove together to the Mexican capital in the US presidential limousine “The Beast”. According to media reports, the drive from the remote airport to Biden’s hotel in the center of Mexico City took over an hour. “Tomorrow he will be with us at the National Palace. Then we will continue our talks on matters of interest to our peoples and nations,” López Obrador wrote on Twitter.
A bilateral meeting between the two heads of state was planned for Monday. The topic of migration is likely to be the focus of the talks. On Tuesday, López Obrador, Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meet for the North America Summit.
Mexico wants to submit proposal
At the summit, Mexico wants to submit a proposal for an “alliance for the prosperity of the peoples of America”, as Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard announced. The aim is to fight poverty in the region and distribute wealth more fairly. The main aim should be to combat the causes of migration.
The situation on the US-Mexico border has recently deteriorated. Between October 2021 and October 2022, the US Border Protection Agency registered more than two million attempts by people to enter the United States. According to the statistics, the number of migrants who come from Cuba, Colombia, Nicaragua and Venezuela is growing.
The high number of migrants illegally crossing the border with Mexico into the United States is one of the most pressing domestic political issues for Biden. The opposition Republicans, who have gained strength since the congressional elections in November, accuse him of having too lax a migration policy.