Panama’s president dismisses key issue as ‘US problem’

The ongoing migrant crisis in the Western Hemisphere is a “US problem,” Panama’s president said, adding that deportation flights partly funded by the US are only voluntary.

“This is a problem that concerns the United States and we are working to manage it,” newly elected President Jose Raul Molino said Thursday.

“People don’t want to live here in Panama. They want to go to the United States.”

Panama is a major transit area for migrants heading north, with many moving through the Darien Gap, a vast jungle that crosses Panama and Colombia and serves as a corridor through Central America toward the United States.

The United States has worked with Panama and Colombia to try to reduce crossings, including a 60-day campaign last year to address the humanitarian crisis.

The campaign aims to end the illegal movement of people, open new “legal and flexible pathways” for migrants and launch a plan to “reduce poverty, improve public service delivery, create jobs and promote economic and sustainable opportunities in border communities in northern Colombia and southern Panama, through international partnerships across financial institutions, civil society and the private sector.”

But more than half a million migrants moved to Panama last year, and Molino has pledged to make changes to resolve the crisis and make Panama a less attractive destination.

He also pledged to increase deportations.

Earlier this month, the United States signed a memorandum of understanding that says the United States will pay for deportation flights and other assistance to help Panama deport migrants.

A US spokesperson said the effort to return some migrants to their home countries “will help deter irregular migration in the region and on our southern border and stop the enrichment of malicious smuggling networks that exploit vulnerable migrants.”

However, Molino made it clear this week that the only migrants who will be returned are those who agree to it.

If migrants don’t want to go back to their countries, “they’ll go to the United States. I can’t arrest them. We can’t forcibly return them to their countries.”

The Biden administration has emphasized the importance of foreign relations and cooperation as part of its strategy to curb border crossings, which have exploded under its watch as the border crisis remains a major political issue in the United States.

Republicans have blamed the Biden administration for rolling back Trump-era policies and accused it of stimulating immigration with its “open borders” policies.

The administration has said it needs funding and reforms from Congress, which it has so far failed to provide.

But she recently noted that the numbers have declined since President Biden announced an executive order limiting crossings and increasing standards for asylum interviews.

Since June, encounters have decreased by more than 50%, and the number of releases has decreased by 70%.

Officials also say the administration has removed and returned more than 50,000 individuals to more than 100 countries.

In his statements to the press, Molino said he hopes the upcoming Venezuelan elections will also help.

“Practically all of Venezuela passes through there every day,” Molino said.

“If elections in this country were conducted properly, respecting the will of the people regardless of who wins, I am sure that this number would go down.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.