Migrant apprehensions at the U.S. southern border fell 30 per cent in June from the previous month, Mexico said on Tuesday, after introducing controls as part of a deal with the United States to curb the flow of migration or face possible trade tariffs.
Citing data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Mexico’s foreign ministry said 100,037 migrants were apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border in June, down from 144,278 migrants in May, including people who appeared at ports of entry and were deemed inadmissible.
The June numbers did not appear on CBP’s website on Tuesday night.
“Mexico’s effort to control the flow of migrants appears to have broken a growing trend,” the ministry said in a statement.
Mexico agreed on June 7 to reduce the number of migrants reaching the U.S. border within a period of 45 days, after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose initial tariffs of 5% on all Mexican goods if the flow of people was not slowed.
Among the measures, Mexico in June deployed thousands of militarized police to its southern and northern borders.
If its strategies fail, Mexico has said it will consider changing its laws to satisfy Trump’s demand that Mexico become a buffer zone to stop migrants entering the United States.
