President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that the US plans to prolong Title 42, which allows border officials to eject migrants entering from Mexico, while also accepting up to 30,000 migrants a month from Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua and Haiti.
The President announced the expansion of the parole programme while also telling migrants: “Do not just show up at the border. Stay where you are and apply legally from there. Starting today. If you don't apply through the legal process, you will not be eligible for this new parole programme.”
The Biden administration has tried to lift Title 42 but the Supreme Court has ordered it to remain in place until an official ruling, following a challenge by Republican state governors.
“I don't like Title 42,” Mr Biden said to reporters after his remarks.
The order was originally enforced by former president Donald Trump.
Mr Biden added that Mexico has agreed to allow the US to return 30,000 people per month who are apprehended while attempting to unlawfully cross the border.
Mr Biden will visit the US-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, on Sunday for the first time since he became President two years ago, as a stop on the way to Mexico City for meetings with Mexican and Canadian leaders.
The President, who took office in January 2021, has struggled with record numbers of migrants caught crossing the US-Mexico border. Migration is expected to be a major item on the agenda at the meeting in Mexico City.
Republicans, who are currently holding up the US Congress with their inability to elect a new House Speaker, have criticised the Biden administration over what they perceive as lax border security, while the White House argues it is trying to create a more humane structure.
“The actions we're announcing today will make things better … but will not fix the border problem completely,” Mr Biden said. “There's more that has to be done.”
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Central American mothers demonstrate in Mexico City to demand justice for their children who have disappeared during their transit through Mexico to the US. EPA -
Migrants from Central and South America seeking asylum in the US camp out as Title 42 border restrictions continue. AFP -
Thousands of migrants arrive in the Mexican city of Tijuana each year. AFP -
Migrant children wait on a road after a caravan from Central America was blocked by Guatemalan authorities. Reuters -
A three-year-old asylum seeker from Honduras holds her mother’s hand after crossing the Rio Grande into the US from Mexico. Reuters -
Migrants await transport after arriving at the border wall in Penitas, Texas. Reuters -
US Border Patrol agents speak to an unaccompanied minor from Honduras after she crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico. Getty / AFP -
Migrant women and children rest at an improvised shelter in Santiago Niltepec, Oaxaca state, Mexico. AFP -
A US Border Patrol officer blocks the path of a migrant trying to return to the US after having crossed into Mexico. Reuters -
The US said it would increase deportation flights for thousands of migrants who entered the Texas border city of Del Rio. AFP -
The US Border Patrol prevents migrants from crossing into Texas from Mexico. AFP -
US Border Patrol officers bar the way to migrants trying to return to the US. Reuters -
US law enforcement officers attempt to close off crossing points along the Rio Grande. AFP -
US authorities attempt to close the border to stop the flow of migrants. AP
