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El Salvador agrees to accept US deportees of any nationality following meeting with Rubio

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El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele has offered for illegal immigrants – of any nationality – facing deportation in the U.S. to be booked in his country’s prison system in exchange for a fee.

This proposal comes after Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Bukele at his lakeside country house outside San Salvador on Monday.

«We have offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system,» Bukele wrote on X Monday night. «We are willing to take in only convicted criminals (including convicted U.S. citizens) into our mega-prison (CECOT) in exchange for a fee. The fee would be relatively low for the U.S. but significant for us, making our entire prison system sustainable.»

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Rubio said the Salvadoran president «has agreed to the most unprecedented, extraordinary, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world.»

RUBIO HEADS TO PANAMA, LATIN AMERICA TO PURSUE TRUMP’S ‘GOLDEN AGE’ AGENDA

Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele at his residence at Lake Coatepeque on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP)

«We can send them, and he will put them in his jails,» Rubio told reporters, referring to illegal immigrants behind bars in U.S. prisons. «And, he’s also offered to do the same for dangerous criminals currently in custody and serving their sentences in the United States, even though they’re U.S. citizens or legal residents.»

While Bukele did extend the offer to include violent American criminals, it is highly unlikely that part of the offer would actually happen, since it is illegal to deport U.S. citizens. A U.S. official said the Trump administration has no plans to deport American citizens, but noted that Bukele’s offer was significant.

The proposal with El Salvador, known as a «safe third country» agreement, could potentially be an option for Venezuelan gang members convicted in the U.S. if Venezuela refuses to accept them, and Rubio said Bukele offered to accept detainees of any nationality.

Bukele also said he would take back all Salvadoran MS-13 gang members in the U.S. illegally, and promised to accept and incarcerate criminal illegal aliens from any country, especially those affiliated with Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang.

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Manuel Flores, the secretary general of the leftist opposition party Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, argued that the «safe third country» plan would paint the region as the U.S. government’s «backyard to dump the garbage.»

TRUMP ANNOUNCES VENEZUELA WILL TAKE CRIMINAL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS BACK

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele

Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele at his residence at Lake Coatepeque in El Salvador, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP)

Rubio was visiting El Salvador to push for more help in supporting President Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan. He arrived in San Salvador shortly after watching a U.S.-funded deportation flight carrying 43 illegal immigrants leave from Panama for Colombia.

The deportation flight had 32 men and 11 women detained by Panamanian authorities after illegally crossing the Darien Gap from Colombia. The State Department said the deportations send a message of deterrence.

«Mass migration is one of the great tragedies in the modern era,» Rubio said afterward. «It impacts countries throughout the world. We recognize that many of the people who seek mass migration are often victims and victimized along the way, and it’s not good for anyone.»

El Salvador's Foreign Minister Alexandra Hill Tinoco welcomes U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio

Rubio is nearly half way done with his Central America tour after Monday’s visit to El Salvador. (AP)

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Rubio’s trip comes during a sweeping freeze on U.S. foreign assistance and stop-work orders that have shut down taxpayer-funded programs targeting illegal immigration and crime in Central America. The State Department said that the secretary had approved waivers for certain critical programs in countries he is visiting.

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The secretary will continue to urge foreign leaders to do more to help the U.S. combat illegal immigration, including in his next stops in Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic, which are part of his five-nation Central American tour following the visits to Panama and El Salvador.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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Former USAID official warns China is already looking to fill void left by paused programs

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The Trump administration’s pause of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funding may leave the door open for China to spread its influence, and Beijing is not wasting time trying to fill in the gaps.

A former USAID official, who spoke with Fox News Digital under the condition of anonymity, said that whereas the U.S. stepped down, China has «immediately» stepped in.

«We’ve just seen news reporting coming out of Nepal, Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, documenting directly that where USAID programs have ended that the People’s Republic of China has told these governments that it will step in and become the partner for these governments to continue that work,» a former USAID official told Fox News Digital.

An illustration of Elon Musk, President Donald Trump and a USAID flag. (Getty Images)

FORMER USAID ADMINISTRATOR SAYS AGENCY SHOULD STAY WITH CONSERVATIVE HEAD

China has already stepped up its funding to Cambodia’s largest demining organization, the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC), in the absence of U.S. funds, according to Reuters. As it seeks increased influence, Beijing pledged $4.4 million to CMAC, more than double the $2 million it received from the U.S. last year, the outlet added.

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Additionally, China is also watching the funding freeze’s impact on Nepal, the Annapurna Express reports. While China is already sending funds to Nepal, it is reportedly increasing its financial support in various areas.

The former USAID official emphasized that «by removing these [USAID] programs it adds one more reason for many of these partners to now not see the United States as a partner who shares their priorities of investing in the people of their countries.»

Trump in the Oval Office in 2019

President Donald Trump displays a signed National Security Presidential Memorandum in the Oval Office in 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

TOP FEDERAL AGENCY EXPOSED FOR SPENDING BILLIONS ON MIGRANTS IN A SINGLE YEAR

While there are several populations around the globe feeling the impact of the Trump administration’s funding freeze, the situation is particularly treacherous for women.

During President Donald Trump’s first term in office, his daughter, Ivanka, played a key role in launching the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (W-GDP). At the time, the White House said the program was aimed at advancing women’s economic empowerment.

Lilian Achom, who is based in Uganda, participated in USAID W-GDP Fund programming and was present when Trump launched the W-GDP. Now, she fears that women grappling with HIV/AIDS, many of whom are widows trying to raise children.

When speaking to Fox News Digital, Achom said Trump needs to «think about the underprivileged deep down in northern Uganda. The underprivileged, the children, the women who are currently suffering.»

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Achom recalled meeting Ivanka Trump and spoke highly of the president’s daughter, saying that she was «inspired» by her.

«I saw in her someone who was really, really interested in women’s empowerment, economic development and digital inclusion for women around the world,» Achom said of Ivanka.

Ivanka Trump and Lilian Achom

Ivanka Trump speaks while next to Lilian Achom in the White House, Feb. 7, 2019. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

The former USAID official who spoke with Fox News Digital said that the funding freeze is «impacting potentially every aspect of the lives of women and girls who were benefiting from USAID programs.» The official added that while China is already trying to fill certain voids left by the U.S., it’s unclear whether they will fund programs focused on women.

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The White House has accused USAID of funding «the ridiculous — and, in many cases, malicious — pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats.»

Among the areas of «waste and abuse» highlighted by the White House are $2.5 million for electric vehicles for Vietnam, $1.5 million to «advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities,» and $6 million to fund tourism in Egypt.

The State Department did not respond to a Fox News request for comment.

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