Guatemala postpones Trump summit, says will not sign 'safe third country' deal

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Guatemala said on Sunday it would postpone President Jimmy Morales’ visit to Washington to discuss Guatemala’s potential designation as a ‘safe third country’ for asylum seekers, stressing that it has no plans to sign such an agreement.

In a statement, Guatemala said the planned meeting between Morales and U.S. President Donald Trump this week had been postponed until the Guatemalan Constitutional Court had ruled on legal challenges. Last week, five former senior officials appealed to the court to block any agreement with the United States that would declare Guatemala a ‘safe third country.’

Under such a deal, Guatemala would be obliged to offer asylum to migrants who entered its territory en route to the United States. Migrants from Honduras and El Salvador heading to the U.S.-Mexican border overland usually cross into Mexico via Guatemala.

More from World

‘Most restrictive country in the world’: UN says North Korea executing citizens for sharing foreign films and TV shows US slams China’s ‘destabilising plans’ at Scarborough Shoal, reaffirms support for Manila

Over the past week, opposition has mounted to such a designation for Guatemala, which would radically reshape migration in the region.

“The government of the republic reiterates that at no point it considers signing an agreement to convert Guatemala into a safe third country,” the government said.

(Reporting by Sofia Menchu; writing by Julia Love; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.