(CNN) – Mexican officials met this Friday with the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and agreed to “depressurize” the northern Mexican cities bordering El Paso, Eagle Pass and San Diego, deport immigrants to their countries of origin and to carry out a series of measures to prevent rail transport According to the Mexican National Migration Institute, the system cannot be used to reach the border with the United States.
The meeting took place across the border from El Paso in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, following a recent surge in illegal crossings into the United States, temporarily closing an international bridge and temporarily paralyzing Mexico’s main freight train system. According to the institute, acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller, the commissioner of the Mexican National Immigration Institute, the governor of the Mexican state of Chihuahua, members of the Mexican defense and national guard and Ferromex, a Mexican railway operator, were present.
According to Mexico’s National Migration Institute, Mexican officials agreed to implement 15 measures, some in coordination with CBP and Ferromex, to address the needs of the rail system and deter migrants from risking their lives on the train. These actions by Mexican officials include, but are not limited to:
1. Deport migrants by land and air to their countries of origin.
2. Allow CBP to deport migrants via the Ciudad Juárez International Bridge, which connects to El Paso.
3. Negotiate with the governments of Venezuela, Brazil, Nicaragua, Colombia and Cuba to accept their deported citizens.
4. Carrying out interventions on railways and roads.
5. Set up checkpoints along the Ferromex railway line.
6. Provide a daily report on the number of migrants in the train system to the CBP El Paso Sector.
This action by Mexican officials raises questions about whether Mexico is doing the United States’ work south of the border to address the current immigration problem plaguing the United States.
CNN asked CBP these and other questions about the reception of migrants expelled across the Ciudad Juárez International Bridge and the daily information Mexico will provide about migrants traveling by train. CBP confirmed the meeting took place but did not immediately respond to CNN’s questions.
Despite Mexico’s new efforts to “decongest” the border by deporting migrants, Mexico’s National Migration Institute said it has already deported hundreds of thousands of migrants and more than 788,000 migrants returned to their home countries between January 1 and September.