At the end of March, after a series of trips to Central America and negotiations, then secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen signed an agreement with the so called “Northern Triangle” countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, a bilateral accord to stem the flow of migrants, quell human trafficking, and improve regional security.
A day prior, State Department Secretary Mike Pompeo told congress he and Nielsen were on orders from President Donald Trump to use U.S. funding to “develop a set of programs that reward effective outcomes, that reward good leadership, that get us to a place where we actually achieve the outcomes.” DHS’s own press release hailed the agreement as a “historic” compact bolstering the “work to stem the flood of irregular migration and develop a regional approach to addressing the ongoing humanitarian and security emergency at our Southern Border.”
