By Sarah Kinosian

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Guatemala is open to accepting citizens of other Central American countries expelled from the United States, three sources familiar with the matter said, as the country looks to build a positive relationship with the incoming Trump administration.

“There has to be a response in the region,” a Guatemalan official who asked not to be identified told Reuters. “And we want to be part of the solution.”

The US has struggled to deport nationals from places like Nicaragua, Venezuela and Haiti because of strained relations. That could prove a challenge for President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to deport record numbers of immigrants living in the United States illegally.

His group has reached out to the governments of many countries to test their willingness to take in deportees from third countries.

Many of the US’s neighbors, including Mexico and the Bahamas, have said they do not want to accept deportees from third countries.

By 2022, more than 40% of immigrants living in the US illegally will come from Mexico, accounting for 4.8 million of the 11 million in total, according to a report by the US Department of Homeland Security. That’s followed by Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, which together account for more than a fifth of the total.

Guatemala has been particularly active in preparing for Trump’s second term in relation to neighbors El Salvador and Honduras, meeting with members of the Trump transition team, Senator Marco Rubio before he was tapped for secretary of state. and the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank, on mass immigration. deportation, border security, drug trafficking and China.

All three countries, along with a Nicaraguan government that has the most openly hostile relationship with the US, face a moment of reckoning, in handling Trump’s demand that they accept deportees. and a potential prevention of remittances from immigrants to the US, which is a great contribution to their economy.

The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

LOOKING FOR NEAR START

Guatemala-US meetings signaled the center-left government of President Bernard Arevalo, an ally of the Biden administration, wants to start smooth terms with the Trump administration, despite the relationship between Guatemala’s conservative opposition and many in the orbit of the president-elect. Trump’s inauguration will take place on January 20.

El Salvador, whose populist President Nayib Bukele has good relations with Trump’s camp, is taking a less proactive approach. But a source close to the discussions between Salvadoran officials and the transition team said that the Trump administration sees smooth cooperation with El Salvador on immigration.

The Guatemalan official noted that the country has already received 14 deportation flights per week under President Joe Biden and is preparing for an increase.

Honduras’ Deputy Foreign Minister Antonio Garcia told Reuters that the country receives 10 deportation flights every week. Reuters could not confirm the number of deportation flights to other Central American countries.

DETENTION OF DEPORTATION

Guatemala expects a significant increase in deportations in the fall, on the grounds that it will take time to ramp them up.

“We’re not ready for it, but we know it’s coming,” a second Guatemalan government official said.

Guatemala will prioritize Guatemalans for reintegration, the second official said, adding that each country must take responsibility for its citizens, but also emphasized a regional agreement with Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador allow free movement.

Guatemala’s vision for the deportees is to put their skills developed in the United States to work in the private sector, the person said.

“These are people who work in construction, in the service industry, in different sectors, and many speak English. We want to use that.”

In late November, Guatemala’s security minister and migration director traveled to Washington, according to three sources close to the matter, and met with Rubio and other key Republicans, where discussions covered drug trafficking, migration and deportation.

They also met with the Heritage Foundation, whose employees worked for much of the first Trump administration.

While they discussed immigration and deportations, the foundation primarily emphasized that Guatemala wanted to maintain its loyalty to US ally Taiwan in China, the sources said.

Officials know that more deportations could weaken Guatemala’s economy if remittances fall and the cost of reintegrating deportees rises.

About 20% of Guatemala’s GDP comes from remittances – money sent home by the diaspora in the United States.

By 2023, remittances will account for 24% of El Salvador’s gross domestic product and nearly 30% of Honduras’ GDP.

Guatemalan officials say they are not concerned about the immediate economic impact of the drop in remittances, but have expressed concern about a drop in remittances paired with a proposed increase in tariffs or taxes on remittances by Trump.

“We don’t have a financial plan yet, there are just too many unknowns,” said the second official.

Guatemalan officials are analyzing surveys by the UN’s International Organization for Migration that show which parts of Guatemala most migrants have left, hoping to prepare communities for their possible return, the two official said.

The Salvadoran government has said it will announce plans once the Trump administration acts.

“We are working on the facts and this is all speculation,” Vice President Felix Ulloa told Reuters.

Bukele, like Trump, has positioned himself as a political disrupter, and has ties to many people close to Trump.

Honduras’ Deputy Foreign Minister Garcia said the country’s ambassador to the United States met with an informal group of Trump’s transition team and Guatemala to coordinate a response.

Garcia emphasized that the country always receives deportees but noted that at least 40% of migrants try to immigrate to the United States again. He added that it is important that the two countries work to improve the living conditions that cause migration, such as gang violence, unemployment and poverty.

“Honduras has already experienced the phenomenon of mass deportations and maybe the difference is from 10 flights to 20 or 30 more,” said Garcia. “We need to sit down with the Americans and agree on the logistics and slots in the return centers to do it with dignity and respect.”