2023-08-29 09:09:05
WASHINGTON (AP) — United States President Joe Biden will receive his Costa Rican counterpart, Rodrigo Chaves, at the White House on Tuesday following the agreement reached between the two nations on possible legal pathways for migrants to enter the country.
The two leaders are expected to discuss how they can work together to strengthen economic ties between the countries through new jobs, advances in democracy and the promotion of patterned migration.
The Central American nation has become a key migration passage as more and more people travel through the dangerous Darien jungle from Colombia to Central America and north to Costa Rica.
In June, San Juan and Washington agreed to open possible legal migration pathways to the United States for some of the Nicaraguans and Venezuelans who are among the 240,000 asylum seekers in Costa Rica. Last year, nine out of 10 applications filed in the Central American country were from a Nicaraguan citizen.
The agreement seeks to reduce pressure on the overwhelmed Costa Rican asylum system and prevent applicants from giving in to its slow pace and heading for the US-Mexico border.
The United States faces an increase in migrant arrivals at its border with Mexico and clamped down on illegal crossings, in addition to expanding entry routes following the end of border restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chaves said in December that people seeking to go to work and then leave were abusing the policies and that they would be toughened. As an alternative, a two-year work permit was offered to Nicaraguans, Venezuelans and Cubans who withdraw their long-term asylum cases.
Costa Rica, a country of around 5 million people, is also suffering from rising crime and murders, largely attributed to drug-related violence. The country, which years ago was an obligatory passage for drugs going from South America to the United States, is now becoming an important nerve center and its national market has grown. Chaves has promised to increase the police presence.
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