Photo via: Marco Rubio on X
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Paraguayan Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez Lezcano signed a memorandum of understanding in Washington on Thursday establishing Paraguay as a "safe third country" for asylum seekers.
According to AFP, the agreement will allow people currently seeking asylum in the United States to submit and process their applications directly in Paraguay, as part of a mechanism to "share the burden" of immigration management.
During the event, Rubio praised Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, calling him a "great ally and strong partner of the United States," and noted that the agreement will help prevent irregular migration, which he said constitutes a threat to his country's national security.
"This will allow our nations to share the burden of managing irregular migration while ending abuse of the asylum system," the US Secretary of State said, adding that the two countries will cooperate in more areas in the future.
For his part, Ramírez Lezcano responded in the same cordial tone, assuring Paraguay that it is also willing to collaborate in trade, investment, and security.
The agreement underlines the political rapprochement between Asunción and Washington since Donald Trump's return to the U.S. presidency in January. In February, Rubio traveled to Paraguay to strengthen bilateral ties.
What does this agreement mean?
The concept of a "safe third country" implies that an asylum seeker arriving in the United States could be sent to Paraguay to process their claim, under the premise that the country offers minimum protection guarantees and an adequate asylum system.
In practice, these types of agreements:
- Transfers part of the responsibility to process asylum applications to another country.
- Deters irregular migration, as people will not necessarily remain in the U.S. while waiting for a response.
- Strengthens diplomatic ties and cooperation between the signatory countries.
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