International
The United States begins the deployment of 1,500 soldiers on the border with Mexico
The United States Government began this Wednesday the deployment of about 1,500 soldiers on the border with Mexico, thus taking the first step to fulfill the promise of President Donald Trump to “close” the passage of migrants and strengthen border security.
The White House spokeswoman, Karoline Leavitt, explained this Wednesday in statements to journalists that the president signed the executive order for that deployment on Monday and the Pentagon later confirmed that it has already mobilized to comply with it.
The acting Secretary of Defense, Robert Salesses, said on Wednesday that he has authorized three actions that will begin today. First, the sending of those troops and helicopters and their respective personnel, as well as intelligence analysts to assist in the detection and control work.
According to his figures, this represents a 60% increase in the number of active forces on the ground since Trump took office on Monday.
The Pentagon will also provide military air transport to support the deportation flights of more than 5,000 “illegal aliens” from San Diego, California, and El Paso, Texas, detained by Customs and Border Protection.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), according to its statement, will be responsible for enforcing the law and the State “will obtain the necessary diplomatic authorizations and notify the host country.”
The Pentagon added that it will “begin to help in the construction of temporary and permanent physical barriers to add security and reduce illegal border crossings and illicit trafficking.”
“This is just the beginning,” the Secretary of Defense emphasized in his note.
Leavitt in turn stressed that these measures are something “for which Trump campaigned.”
“The American people were waiting for a moment like this, in which the Department of Defense takes national security seriously. It is a number one priority for the American people and the president has already fulfilled it,” he said.
The 1,500 troops will be added to the 2,200 active military and the 4,500 Texas National Guard reservists who are already deployed at the border.
As CNN explained, the new troops will perform functions similar to those of the personnel already present, focused on supporting the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with logistical and administrative tasks, such as vehicle maintenance and data entry.
During his first term (2017-2021), Trump ordered the sending of 5,200 troops to the border with Mexico.
This Monday, hours after assuming the presidency again, he signed an executive order that instructs the Pentagon to mobilize the troops necessary to achieve “complete operational control of the southern border of the United States”.
The order also establishes that Trump will evaluate in the next 90 days the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Law of 1807, which would allow the military to assume law enforcement functions within the country, in a role closer to that currently played by the security forces.
Currently, the troops deployed at the border are not authorized to carry out police tasks, such as arresting migrants or seizing drugs. In the United States, laws such as the Posse Comitatus of 1878 prohibit the armed forces from acting as police in the national territory.
International
U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.
The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.
Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.
“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.
The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.
Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.
Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.
International
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.
“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.
At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.
After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.
International
Colombia says it would not reject Maduro asylum request as regional tensions escalate
The Colombian government stated on Thursday that it would have no reason to reject a potential asylum request from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro should he leave office, as regional tensions persist over the deployment of U.S. military forces in the Caribbean since August.
“In the current climate of tension, negotiations are necessary, and if the United States demands a transition or political change, that is something to be assessed. If such a transition results in him (Maduro) needing to live elsewhere or seek protection, Colombia would have no reason to deny it,” said Colombian Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio in an interview with Caracol Radio.
However, Villavicencio noted that it is unlikely Maduro would choose Colombia as a refuge. “I believe he would opt for someplace more distant and calmer,” she added.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro also commented on Venezuela’s situation on Wednesday, arguing that the country needs a “democratic revolution” rather than “inefficient repression.” His remarks followed the recent detention and passport cancellation of Cardinal Baltazar Porras at the Caracas airport.
“The Maduro government must understand that responding to external aggression requires more than military preparations; it requires a democratic revolution. A country is defended with more democracy, not more inefficient repression,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter), in a rare public criticism of the Venezuelan leader.
Petro also called for a general amnesty for political opponents and reiterated his call for forming a broad transitional government to address Venezuela’s prolonged crisis.
Since September, U.S. military forces have destroyed more than 20 vessels allegedly carrying drugs in Caribbean and Pacific waters near Venezuela and Colombia, resulting in over 80 deaths.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that attacks “inside Venezuela” will begin “soon,” while Maduro has urged Venezuelans to prepare for what he describes as an impending external aggression.
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