International
Mexico and the U.S. agree to keep border crossings open
December 29 |
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Thursday that U.S. officials agreed to keep border crossings and railroad crossings open at their meeting Wednesday to address the migration crisis.
“There is more and more movement on the border, on the bridges, and that is why we have to be vigilant so that the crossings are not closed. This agreement was reached. The railroad crossings and border bridges are already opening, normalizing the situation,” said the president in his usual morning press conference, highlighting the strong trade relationship between the two countries.
“We are already the main trading partners in the world Mexico and the United States, they are our main partners,” he detailed.
Lopez Obrador met Wednesday in Mexico City for more than two hours with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other top U.S. officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, to address the sharp increase in migration.
The U.S. has suspended several legal crossings at the more than 2,000-mile border with Mexico arguing that it seeks to focus on processing undocumented immigrants.
The Mexican president added that both countries also agreed to have regular meetings to address the migration issue.
The Mexican Foreign Ministry said in a statement that there will be a meeting in January next year in Washington, although it did not specify the day.
Blinken’s visit came as the opposition Republican Party pressures U.S. President Joe Biden to crack down on migration in exchange for accepting more support for Ukraine in the U.S. Congress.
Wednesday’s trip was abruptly announced last week after Biden spoke by phone with Lopez Obrador.
The number of people seeking to enter the United States without authorization soared this month to about 10,000 per day, nearly double the number before the pandemic.
Few migrants are Mexican. For many years, most have come from Central America, ravaged by extreme poverty, rampant violence and poor harvests, worsened by climate change.
There has also been an increase in migrants from Haiti, plagued by gang violence and lack of a functioning government, and Venezuela, where commodities have become scarce after years of economic chaos.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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