Overview

• Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced on June 26 that the United States has signed agreements with Guatemala and Honduras to take asylum seekers from other countries.
• If enforced, the accords would allow migrants bound for the U.S. to seek refugee status in Central America instead of applying for protection on American soil.
• Guatemalan and Honduran officials have denied authorizing the deals, creating a public dispute over the U.S. account of the agreements.
• These arrangements join earlier safe-third country pacts the U.S. holds with Canada since 2002 and recent agreements with Panama, Costa Rica, and El Salvador.
• Mexico has refused to sign a formal safe-third country pact but has received more than 5,000 migrants deported from the U.S. since Trump took office.