Biden, Mexico's President Vow to Cooperate on Immigration

In a telephone call on Saturday, Biden and Lopez Obrador said they would make efforts to address the reasons for migration in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and southern Mexico.

The two “discussed working together on a new approach to regional migration that offers alternatives to undertaking the dangerous journey to the United States,” a summary of the call provided by Biden’s team said.

Biden said he would build “the regional and border infrastructure and capacity needed to facilitate a new orderly and humane approach to migration that will respect international norms regarding the treatment of asylum claims.”

Lopez Obrador had earlier this week suggested the two countries cooperate on the issue under Biden’s new Democratic administration. On Monday, the US Electoral College confirmed Biden’s Nov. 3 election win.

US President Donald Trump took a tough stance on migration, promising in 2016 to curb immigration by building a wall on the US border with Mexico. He also launched a crackdown on both legal and illegal entries into the country soon after he assumed office.