El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele has made an unprecedented proposal to imprison convicted American criminals in his country’s facilities, an offer that received praise from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The proposal came during Rubio’s visit to Bukele’s Lake Coatepeque residence near San Salvador. Bukele offered to house American convicts for a fee in Latin America’s largest prison, which opened last year.
“We have offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system,” Bukele stated on X. “The fee would be relatively low for the US but significant for us, making our entire prison system sustainable.”
After a three-hour meeting, Rubio expressed strong support for the arrangement, describing it as “the most unprecedented, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world.” He highlighted that the offer extends to “dangerous American criminals in custody in our country, including those with US citizenship and legal residency.”
However, the US State Department has previously characterized El Salvador’s prisons as “harsh and dangerous,” noting inadequate or nonexistent basic facilities including sanitation, water, ventilation, temperature control, and lighting.
Rubio indicated that Bukele would accept both Salvadoran citizens and foreign nationals, particularly targeting members of Latin American gangs like MS-13 and Tren de Aragua. “Any unlawful immigrant and illegal immigrant in the United States who is a dangerous criminal – MS-13, Tren de Aragua, whatever it may be — he has offered his jails,” Rubio stated.
The proposal aligns with Trump’s recent immigration initiatives since returning to the White House, including plans to accelerate deportations of undocumented individuals and detain 30,000 migrants at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba – a facility that previous Democratic administrations sought to close.
Bukele, viewed as a crucial ally in Trump’s migration strategy, has implemented aggressive security measures since 2019. His government has detained over 80,000 people, significantly reducing homicide rates in what was previously among the world’s most violent nations.
While human rights organizations have documented widespread torture and abuse in El Salvador’s overcrowded prisons, Bukele secured re-election with strong public support, largely due to the dramatic reduction in crime rates.
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