US President Donald Trump met with leaders from five African countries in Washington, D.C., to discuss his administration’s plan for African countries to take back migrants deported from the United States.
According to Reuters, the administration pressured the leaders of Senegal, Liberia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, and Gabon to accept the return of their nationals.
The Trump administration presented African leaders with a plan to receive migrants of various nationalities deported from the United States.
While details have not been disclosed, the proposal is similar to the “Rwanda model” once pursued by Britain to transfer irregular migrants to Rwanda.
The Labor government scrapped that model after the last elections, citing violations of international law and human rights conventions.
Since the beginning of his new term, US President Trump has been working to accelerate and increase the deportation of immigrants, and he is interested in concluding agreements with third countries to receive deported immigrants in case there are obstacles delaying their return to their countries of origin.
According to a US administration official, the meeting between Trump and the African leaders was partly dedicated to discussing a plan to deport migrants to African countries.
The official said the Liberian government “is preparing to accommodate efforts to house migrants in its capital, Monrovia.” A Liberian official confirmed that the deportation plan was discussed during the meeting with Trump but did not indicate that the Liberian president had agreed to it.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the US State Department sent African governments an internal document detailing the deportation plan, urging their leaders to agree to “the dignified, safe, and timely transfer of third-country nationals from the United States” pending a final decision on their asylum applications.
Trump also referred to discussions on the deportation plan, saying after the meeting: “I hope we can reduce the high rates of people overstaying their visas, as well as make progress on safe third-country agreements.” The African leaders did not comment or indicate agreement on the plan.
US immigration authorities have deported eight migrants of various nationalities to South Sudan after they lost a lawsuit seeking to halt their deportation orders.
The deported migrants held citizenship from Cuba, Mexico, Vietnam, Laos, and South Sudan.
