PANAMA CITY (AP) — José Raúl Mulino was sworn in Monday as Panama’s next president, facing pressure to slow irregular migration through the Darien Gap that connects his country with Colombia. The 65-year-old former security minister has promised to shut down migration through the jungle-clad and largely lawless border. More than half a million people traversed the corridor last year and more than 190,000 people have crossed so far in 2024, with most of the migrants hailing from Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and China.
Last week on a visit to the Darien, Mulino announced he would seek an agreement with the United States government to aid in deporting migrants who crossed into Panama. U.S.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was among those who attended his inauguration. The U.S.
role would largely be covering the cost of deportation flights. Panama’s Foreign Affairs Minister-designate Javier Martínez Acha said Sunday that the U.S.
would help cover the costs, but that the amounts were not yet set. “As the key issue on his agenda, Mulino has promised to end irregular immigration through the Darien Gap,” said Michael Shifter, adjunct professor at Georgetown University. “The new president appears to be supremely committed to this idea.
” “However, it won’t be easy to carry out this policy, groups and interests can be expected to come out against it,” Shifter said. The U.S.
government will have to shoulder the costs of deportation, he said. Panama.
