WASHINGTON, Sept 11 (Askume) – The United States has imposed visa restrictions on executives of a European charter company accused of “facilitating irregular migration through Nicaragua”, as the Biden administration seeks to curb a growing trend.
The State Department did not name the company or its executives in Wednesday’s statement, nor did it say how many immigrants the company had sent to the United States over time.
Such flights are part of a new wave of illegal immigration to the United States , which the country is trying to control. Immigration is a top issue in the US presidential election on November 5.
Migrants from outside Latin America pay smuggling networks hefty fees for travel packages that can include airfare to Central America, from where they then travel to the U.S.-Mexico border.
“No one should profit from vulnerable migrants — not smugglers, private companies, or public officials,” department spokesman Matthew Miller wrote.
“As part of our broader campaign to combat this type of exploitation, we will continue to impose visa sanctions on unscrupulous transport company owners, executives and senior managers,” Miller said.
US President Joe Biden’s executive actions in June were aimed at limiting the number of people crossing the border above a certain threshold. But it is unclear how the action affects immigrants from India, African countries and other nations, who account for a growing share of illegal immigration.
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and US Vice President Kamala Harris blamed historic levels of immigration on global economic and political instability in the November election.
Republican former President Donald Trump, who is seeking re-election after losing to Biden in 2020, blamed the high threshold on his administration’s policies.
