Mexico Says Not Planning to Restrain Migrant Caravans Heading for US

MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) - The Mexican government does not plan to adopt a special plan to restrain caravans of migrants from Central America that travel through the country to the United States, but the authorities intend to regulate the process, Mexican Interior Secretary Olga Sanchez Cordero said on Monday.

"No, we are planning to regulate and maintain security," Sanchez Cordero told reporters when asked whether the authorities plan to adopt a special plan to curb migration flows.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Mexico, only in February, more than 76,000 migrants, who crossed Mexico and tried to get into the United States were detained, and in March this figure is expected to amount to 100,000 people.

Sanchez Cordero added that the government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador does not intend to militarise the country's southern border in an attempt to contain Central American migrants.

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he will likely close the southern border this week if Mexico does not take action to stop the flow of illegal migration into the United States. The US president added that Mexico is able to curb the problem of illegal migrants heading towards the United States.

After Trump's warning, Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard said in a statement that Mexico does not act on the basis of threats.

READ MORE: Mexico Won't Have Confrontation With US Over Border — President

On Monday, the US Homeland Security Department said in a press release it is accelerating the deployment of up to 750 immigration officers to the US border with Mexico in emergency surge operations "to address the influx of migrants."