The experts are debating whether or not the proclamation from the Summit of the Americas will be sufficient to solve the urgent needs in the area.
As the administration of President Joe Biden seeks greater cooperation to deter rising numbers of asylum seekers from trying to reach the United States, the United States has unveiled a plan that it says will help nations across the Americas region address migration. The United States says the plan will help nations address migration.
A information sheet explaining the “Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection at the Summit of the Americas” was published by the White House on Friday. The purpose of the declaration is to “engage the entire region behind bold initiatives that will revolutionise our approach to managing migration.”
In addition to other measures, the administration of Vice President Joe Biden made a commitment to provide financial assistance totaling hundreds of millions of dollars to Venezuelan refugees living in other parts of the Western Hemisphere. This assistance will go toward programmes that will help Cubans and Haitians obtain temporary family-based visas and will make it easier to hire workers from Central American countries.
Later in the day, as the ninth Summit of the Americas was coming to a close in Los Angeles, California, Vice President Joe Biden announced that “we’re transforming our approach to manage migration in the Americas.” He was joined by representatives from 20 different countries for the ceremonial unveiling of the plan.
“Each one of us, each one of us, is signing up to obligations that recognise the issues that we all share.”
The platform where Vice President Biden led the launch was decorated with the flags of 20 nations, which is few less than the total number of countries that were present at the summit. However, even that figure was only reached after days of US pressure and cajoling during discussions that were already plagued by controversy before they ever started.
Particularly controversial was the United States’ decision to bar the heads of state from Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua from attending the summit due to the poor human rights records of those countries. As a result of this decision, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador decided not to attend the gathering at all.
This week, a number of world leaders have criticised the United States capital for its decision not to extend invitations to all of the world’s heads of state. Analysts have also pointed out that this decision may hinder the ability of the United States to address urgent problems facing the Americas.
On Thursday, during the opening session of the summit, the heads of state from Argentina and Belize mounted the floor to confront Vice President Biden directly over the meeting’s guest list.
prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley also addressed the conference on Friday afternoon, stating that “it is unfortunate that Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua are not here,” and reiterating that “we need to communicate to people with whom we differ.”
According to Mottley, “those countries must equally recognise that you cannot want to fully participate if you are not prepared equally to engage and to see progress, and the simple priority must be people rather than ideology.” “Those countries must equally recognise that you cannot want to fully participate if you are not prepared equally to engage and to see progress,”
“I hope that we leave here today knowing that we must never again come to a summit to speak at each other, but rather to simply talk with each other, in cooperation, and for the goal of the prosperity of our people,” the president said. “It is imperative that we do this.”
“There is just not enough.”
The proclamation that was made on Friday had the goals of encouraging governments to take in significant numbers of refugees, distributing responsibilities around the region, and putting more weight behind agreements and obligations that were already in place.
However, there have been experts who are sceptical that there will be a significant number of promises made.
Lucia Newman, editor for Latin America at Al Jazeera, said that despite the fact that the proclamation has been hailed “as being innovative, even revolutionary… When all the facts are considered, it is clear that what is being done to address the enormous migrant crisis that the area is going through at the moment is not nearly enough.
Reporting from Santiago, the capital of Chile, Newman emphasised the point that migratory patterns in the Americas are not simply heading in the direction of the United States and Canada. “But also from nations like Cuba and Venezuela toward South America,” she continued. “But also from Cuba and Venezuela.”
In the meanwhile, the absence of the presidents of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador — the so-called “Northern Triangle” nations from where a large number of migrants originate – from the summit has also generated worries about how efficiently the planned commitments would be implemented into reality.
A large portion of the Biden administration’s efforts have been directed on tackling the “root causes” of migration in an effort to discourage individuals from requesting asylum at the United States’ southern border in the midst of an increase in the number of migrants.
But this hasn’t prevented a lot of individuals from attempting to get to the United States; severe socioeconomic circumstances, gang violence, unemployment, and other problems are driving a lot of people out of their native nations.
This past week, a migrant caravan with the majority of its members hailing from Venezuela set off from southern Mexico in the direction of the United States. However, a limitation from the time of the epidemic known as Title 42 has been kept in force at the border. This restriction enables American officials to promptly deport the vast majority of those seeking refuge without giving them the opportunity to ask for protection.