Costa Rica will declare a state of emergency due to the increase in immigrants crossing the country. This was announced by its president, Rodrigo Chaves, in a press conference. As reported by Reuters, 60,000 people passed through the border they share with Panama, through the city of Paso Canoas, which has a population of less than 20,000 people.
"I have ordered the Ministry of Security to take a firm stance with anyone who takes Costa Rica's kindness as weakness," President Chaves said in a press conference, referring to immigrants crossing its borders.
JUST IN - Costa Rica to declare state of emergency amid surge of migrants crossing the country — Reuters pic.twitter.com/wHVgTNzMIn
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The president will visit Panama in the coming days to establish a common strategy with his colleague, Laurentino Cortizo, and stop the migratory influx.
The Costa Rican president recently visited the United States, where he met with Joe Biden in the Oval Office. It was the first visit by a Costa Rican leader to Washington DC in 17 years. The last time was in 2006 when George W. Bush received Óscar Arias.
“I want to thank you for your leadership in the migration challenges that we face every single day,” Biden told him, reading a paper he brought with him to the hearing that took place in front of the Chambers. In addition, Biden thanked his counterpart for the cooperation between both countries on security. “That's one of my objectives, and I hope one of yours, including on organized crime,” he added. For his part, Chaves took advantage of the visit to discuss economic issues.
