Mexico said on Wednesday that it will address with Washington a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding an immigration policy enacted by former President Donald Trump that compelled thousands of asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while waiting for hearings in the United States.
The Supreme Court refused US President Joe Biden’s request to have Trump’s “stay in Mexico” policy, formally called as the Migrant Protection Protocols program, revoked on Tuesday. Officials in Mexico have privately voiced worry that the strategy will put a burden on the country’s ability to absorb additional migrants.
Biden’s ending of the policy was his first major step in dismantling Trump-era immigration actions after he took office in January pledging to implement a more humane approach to dealing with mass migration.
In a statement on Twitter overnight, Roberto Velasco, a senior official in the Mexican Foreign Ministry responsible for North American relations, said the U.S. government had been in touch with Mexico over the Supreme Court decision.
“Mexico isn’t part of the judicial process, which is a unilateral measure by the United States,” Velasco said.
Velasco added that on Wednesday that the two countries “will exchange information” to determine what steps Mexico will take “based on the respect of sovereignty and human rights.”
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Wednesday that the foreign ministry would hold a news conference on the matter later in the day.
In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court rejected the Biden administration’s effort to block a Texas-based judge’s ruling requiring the government to revive the policy. The brief order by the justices means that U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling now goes into effect.
“Mexico isn’t part of the judicial process, which is a unilateral measure by the United States,” Velasco said.
Velasco added that on Wednesday that the two countries “will exchange information” to determine what steps Mexico will take “based on the respect of sovereignty and human rights.”
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Wednesday that the foreign ministry would hold a news conference on the matter later in the day.
In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court rejected the Biden administration’s effort to block a Texas-based judge’s ruling requiring the government to revive the policy. The brief order by the justices means that U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling now goes into effect.