**Primary Article:**
**Bukele Offers US Official Proposal to Incarcerate Violent Migrants; US Begins Sending Detainees to Guantanamo**
On February 3, 2025, the President of El Salvador, Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez, extended an offer to the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Antonio Rubio García, to repatriate Salvadoran gang members from the notorious MS-13 gang who are illegally residing in the United States. The Salvadoran leader proposed not only to incarcerate these individuals in his country but also expressed a readiness to detain violent illegal immigrants from other nations, such as members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang. In an unprecedented move, Bukele also offered to house dangerous American criminals, including U.S. citizens and legal residents, in Salvadoran prisons.
Among the facilities suggested by Bukele as potential sites for these detainees is the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT), a maximum-security prison with the capacity for 40,000 inmates, located in Tecoluca, El Salvador. Rubio García described this agreement as a groundbreaking international migration pact.
In a further escalation of U.S. immigration policy, on February 4, 2025, the U.S. government initiated the transfer of detained migrants from American soil to a detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt stated that the U.S. will no longer serve as a repository for international criminal activity.
The U.S. administration has already sent a flight carrying detained migrants to Guantanamo, emphasizing that these individuals had violated immigration laws and committed severe crimes against U.S. citizens. Leavitt praised the agreement between the U.S. and El Salvador while noting similar cooperation from Colombia and Venezuela in accepting repatriated criminals.
**Secondary Article:**
**Broader Implications of US Immigration and Detention Policies**
The recent initiatives by El Salvador’s President and the U.S. government are reflective of a broader trend emphasizing strict immigration policies and intergovernmental cooperation to handle migrant issues. With President Donald Trump endorsing these measures, the focus has shifted towards making such immigration enforcement more efficient and impactful.
In recent years, the United States has increased pressure on Latin American countries to tighten border controls and repatriate their nationals with criminal records from the U.S. The relocation of migrants to facilities like Guantanamo Bay represents a stark reminder of the detention center’s controversial past and hints at a hardened stance on immigration under the current administration.
These developments have sparked debates on the ethics and legality of such detention practices. Advocacy groups express concerns over potential human rights violations, while supporters argue for the necessity of these measures to maintain national security and uphold the rule of law.
Further actions are anticipated as countries navigate the complexities of immigration, crime, and international diplomacy, all while trying to balance national interests with humanitarian considerations.