What happened
José Raúl Mulino was sworn in as Panama's president on Monday and immediately pledged to halt northward migration through the Darien Gap connecting Panama to Colombia. A record 520,000 migrants took the dangerous jungle route toward the U.S. in 2023 and another 190,000 have already followed this year. Most of the migrants are from Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and China.
Who said what
"I won't allow Panama to be an open path for thousands of people who enter our country illegally, supported by an international organization related to drug trafficking and human trafficking," Mulino said. "I understand that there are deep-rooted reasons for migration, but each country has to resolve its problems."
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas attended Mulino's inauguration and signed a memorandum of understanding committing the U.S. to "cover" the costs of repatriating migrants caught trying to cross through the Darien.
What next?
This "massive shift" in Panamanian policy, after the previous administration helped migrants quickly move north into Costa Rica, could "potentially reduce the number" that reach the U.S. border, The Associated Press said. "But it could also force migrants to riskier paths and be a boon for smugglers."
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