Costa Rica has agreed to accept migrants deported by the United States, the Presidential House announced in a brief statement on Monday.

"The Government of Costa Rica has agreed to cooperate with the United States in repatriating 200 undocumented immigrants," the Costa Rican president’s office said. "These individuals are from Central Asia and India."

The deportees are expected to arrive on Wednesday, at Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) in Alajuela Province. They will then be transferred by police to the Temporary Migrant Care Center (Catem) in Corredores Canton, Puntarenas Province.

The deported individuals will remain at the center until their extradition process to their home countries is completed.

The transportation and maintenance costs for the deportees will be covered by the U.S. government, with oversight from the International Organization for Migration.

 

Costa Rica became the third Central American country to accept deportees from the United States. Panama and Guatemala previously reached similar agreements during U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s recent Latin American tour.

In early February, Rubio addressed key regional issues during his visit to Costa Rica, including international aid, migration, drug trafficking, cybercrime, and China's growing influence in the region.

According to a report by Voice of America, Panama received its first deportation flight last week, with 119 migrants on board from countries such as China, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Guatemala has not yet received any deportees.

Most of the United States' estimated 11 million undocumented migrants come from Latin America.

On his first day in office, President Trump declared a national emergency at the southern U.S. border and vowed to deport "millions and millions" of migrants.

Voice of America Journal, VOA, is a U.S. government news agency funded by the U.S. Congress.

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