Paraguay Will Accept 25 U.S. Deportees Under Trump Mass Deportation Push

Paraguay has announced it will accept non-citizens expelled from the United States as part of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation push, with the country’s Foreign Ministry saying an initial group of 25 Spanish-speaking deportees will arrive starting Thursday.

“The South American nation of Paraguay has announced it will receive non-citizens expelled from the United States as part of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation push”

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera reports that Paraguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday that it will receive the first group of 25, “starting on Thursday.”

Al Jazeera

News On AIR similarly says, “Paraguay’s Foreign Ministry yesterday announced that an initial group of 25 Spanish-speaking deportees will arrive starting from tomorrow,” and it frames the move as part of Trump’s mass deportation drive.

Tribune India, citing Al Jazeera, also states that Paraguay “announced on Tuesday that an initial group of 25 Spanish-speaking deportees will arrive starting Thursday.”

Devdiscourse likewise says, “Paraguay will receive 25 migrants from the United States on Thursday,” describing it as part of a migration cooperation agreement between Paraguay and the U.S.

The CNN en Español report adds a separate but related development, saying the U.S. signed “a Safe Third Country Agreement with Paraguay” that will allow asylum seekers currently on U.S. soil to process their protection requests in Paraguay.

In that CNN en Español account, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is quoted saying, “The agreement offers asylum seekers who are currently in the United States the opportunity to process their protection requests in Paraguay.”

The Paraguay announcement is presented in the sources as part of a broader “third-country” approach that allows the United States to send immigrants to countries “with which they have no direct ties,” according to Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera says the Trump administration “has approached dozens of countries to take part,” and it links the scheme to an effort “to restrict migration to the US.”

CNN en Español

It also reports that, “As of February, Democratic lawmakers in the US estimated that more than $40m has been awarded to foreign countries in contracts, as an incentive for accepting deportees.”

News On AIR similarly describes the system as one that allows migrants to be sent to nations with which they have no direct ties, and it says the administration has reportedly approached several countries “despite concerns over human rights conditions in some destinations.”

Tribune India repeats the same incentive figure, stating that “over USD 40 million had been given to foreign governments through contracts as incentives to accept deportees.”

Al Jazeera further lists countries that have accepted such deportations, including Costa Rica, El Salvador, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, and South Sudan, and it says some of those arrangements have been “multimillion-dollar deals to accept and imprison deportees.”

The sources also describe legal and political pushback tied to the third-country concept, including a pledge by the Uganda Law Society and the East Africa Law Society to challenge local third-country deportations after “a dozen deportees arrived from the US earlier this month.”

In the same Al Jazeera account, the Associated Press is cited as having reported that the Trump administration is seeking similar arrangements with “47 additional countries.”

In the sources, U.S. officials and a U.S. embassy official frame the Paraguay arrangement as lawful and orderly, while Paraguay’s Foreign Ministry is described as not commenting on the Safe Third Country Agreement.

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Devdiscourse

Al Jazeera quotes Robert Alter, an official at the US Embassy in Paraguay, praising the agreement and describing it as “a testament to Washington’s close relationship with Paraguay.”

Alter is also quoted in Al Jazeera saying, “These migrants do not have pending asylum applications in the United States,” and the statement says, “The intention of this collaboration is to facilitate the safe and orderly return of these individuals to their countries of origin.”

CNN en Español provides additional U.S. framing through Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is quoted saying the agreement will allow both countries “to share the burden of managing illegal immigration” and “to put an end to the abuse of the asylum system” in the United States.

CNN en Español also says Rubio added, “Continued engagement with partners such as Paraguay is vital to deter illegal immigration and protect our borders,” and it notes that Rubio thanked President Santiago Peña.

CNN en Español states that the agreement was signed by Paraguayan Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez in Washington, and it adds that “For the moment, Paraguay's Foreign Ministry has not commented on the matter.”

Devdiscourse describes the arrangement as “a newly signed migration cooperation agreement between the two nations,” and it says it aims “to manage the deportation of migrants from third countries.”

Advocacy groups and legal organizations in the sources criticize the third-country deportation approach and describe it as coercive or dehumanizing, while the U.S. and embassy statements emphasize legality and individual evaluation.

Al Jazeera reports that advocacy groups have accused the Trump administration of using “the threat of third-country deportations as an intimidation tactic.”

Tribune India

It also quotes a legal challenge framing from Uganda Law Society and the East Africa Law Society, saying they argued that the deportations were an “undignified, harrowing and dehumanising process” that reflected a system of “transnational repression.”

In the same Al Jazeera report, the U.S. embassy statement is presented as addressing legality, with the statement saying, “Each case has been evaluated individually, in full respect of national sovereignty, immigration laws, and international law.”

Tribune India repeats that language, stating that the Foreign Ministry’s statement reads, “Each case has been evaluated individually, in full respect of national sovereignty, immigration laws, and international law.”

CNN en Español, meanwhile, frames the Safe Third Country Agreement as a way “to put an end to the abuse of the asylum system” and to “protect our borders,” with Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s quoted remarks.

News On AIR also notes that the Trump administration has reportedly approached several countries “despite concerns over human rights conditions in some destinations,” aligning with Al Jazeera’s emphasis on human-rights worries.

Al Jazeera adds that the scheme is part of “an aggressive effort under Trump to restrict migration to the US,” and it points to instability concerns in some destinations, including South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The sources portray the Paraguay arrangement as both an immediate deportation-receipt plan and a longer-term framework for asylum processing, with multiple countries already involved and additional agreements being sought.

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Tribune India

Al Jazeera says Paraguay is “one of the latest in a growing list of countries to participate in ‘third-country’ deportations from the US,” and it describes the U.S. as approaching “dozens of countries” for participation.

Al Jazeera

It also notes that Costa Rica, El Salvador, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini and South Sudan are among the countries that have accepted deportations, and it says some have signed “multimillion-dollar deals to accept and imprison deportees.”

CNN en Español situates the Safe Third Country Agreement as “the first of its kind signed by President Donald Trump in his second term,” and it adds that in 2019, during Trump’s first term, he sealed migration pacts with Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras that were “later rescinded by President Joe Biden.”

CNN en Español also says the agreement was signed by Paraguayan Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez in Washington, and it frames the pact as enabling asylum seekers on U.S. soil to process protection requests in Paraguay.

Devdiscourse emphasizes that Paraguay is “gearing up to welcome the first group of 25 migrants deported from the United States on Thursday,” and it describes the initiative as “mass deportations targeting migrants from third countries.”

In Al Jazeera, the U.S. embassy official Robert Alter seeks to assuage concerns about legality by reiterating, “These migrants do not have pending asylum applications in the United States,” and the statement’s purpose is “to facilitate the safe and orderly return of these individuals to their countries of origin.”

Looking ahead, Al Jazeera says the Associated Press has reported that the Trump administration is seeking similar arrangements with “47 additional countries,” suggesting that Paraguay’s role may be part of a wider expansion.