Belize to aid in U.S. ramp-up of deportations

The small Central American nation of Belize has signed a “safe third country” agreement with the United States, the two sides said on Monday, as the Trump administration seeks to ramp up deportations and dissuade migration north.

- By MEGAN JANETSKY

BELIZE’S PRIME Minister John Briceño addresses the United Nations General Assembly in September.

(RICHARD DREW Associated Press)

What the agreement entails wasn’t immediately clear, but it comes as President Trump has increasingly pressured countries in Latin America and Africa to help him carry out his immigration agenda.

The deal appears to be similar to one with Paraguay announced by the U.S. State Department in August that included a “safe third country” agreement in which asylum seekers currently in the U.S. could pursue protections in the South American nation.