Migration the main issue for Mexico, C. America talks

The flow of migrants to the United States was to dominate talks Thursday between the foreign ministers of Mexico and Central America, Costa Rica's top diplomats said.

"We will make an analysis of the context affecting the region, focused on the issue of migratory flows," Costa Rican Foreign Minister Manuel Gonzalez told reporters ahead of the gathering north of San Jose.

Central America -- particularly its violence-prone nations of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras -- are the main source of undocumented migrants to the US. The region is also a transit point for migrants from elsewhere.

Mexico also provides many migrants, though less than in years past, and is the country that shares the southern border of the United States.

New hardline anti-immigration policies by the administration of US President Donald Trump have unsettled the region, but close economic ties mean criticism has been relatively muted.

Gonzalez said the issue of migration had increasingly affected Costa Rica, which is stable and comparatively prosperous. Haitians, Africans and Cubans, especially, seek to pass through the country on their way north.

"No one country can tackle this phenomenon," the foreign minister said.

source: AFP