The border between America and Mexico is 3200 kilometers long, and only 1050 kilometers are defended by fence or wall. During the 19th century, Mexicans did not need to cross borders to find themselves in the United States. After Mexico lost the war against the US, they concluded the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. Since then, Texas belongs to and is controlled by the Americans. According to the Treaty, 80.000 Mexicans received American citizenship, well before the Afro-Americans, Asians or Indians did.
Today, many people wish things to be that simple. The Custom and Border Protection in the US belongs to the Ministry of Homeland Security, and they revealed a report on Wednesday. According to the report, the figure of the illegal immigrants who wants to enter the United States has increased by 37 percent in March. The increase is a significant 203 percent, compared to last March.
In his tweet, President Trump warned everybody on the dangers of illegal immigration, which poses a threat to American jobs and national security. He purposed exact steps for deploying a unit to support border defense. The goal is to accomplish the expectations concerning the reinforced border defense. Not long ago, the first unit has been deployed with 225 soldiers, in Yuma, Arizona. As promised by Donald Trump, the border security will be soon aided by even 4000 soldiers, who will defend the border on land and in the air, with helicopters. Their task will be to support border defense, and to ensure the security for those who are living close to the border, by decreasing criminal activity.
The “deployment” of the National Guard (well-known as reserve military force) is not unprecedented. Since the presidency of Ronald Regan, every US president have ordered its mobilization for temporary tasks. In 1986, Regan deployed them against drug-dealers at the southern border. In 2006, George W. Bush ordered 6000 soldiers of the National Guard to fight against drug-traffic, and to deal with illegal migration. In 2010, Barack Obama ordered 1200 soldiers to the southern border again.
Meanwhile, the construction of a section of the defense system has been started. In Santa Teresa, a massive ferroconcrete wall is being built, instead of the barely one-and-a-half-meter tall fence. The new wall will reach 9 meters at certain places. The Trump Administration spends nine billion Forints (in Dollars) for the 32-kilometer-long section.
Not long ago, a migrant caravan of 1000 people started moving from the region of Central America characterized by political conflicts to the United States, in order to seek asylum. It might have played a role in the decision of the American President. The march happens annually, since 2010. The actual crowd is significantly bigger than the usual, because of the refugees from Honduras. The President said: He is ready to renounce the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which is the “milking cow” of Mexico. It happens in case of the Mexicans will not stop the caravan. Trump also envisaged the suspension of financial aids provided for Latin-American countries like Honduras. Besides, he rejected the former option of providing citizenship for nearly two million children of illegal migrants born in the United States. After the president put pressure on the Mexicans, the caravan has stopped by itself, before it would have reached the border of the United States.
In the beginning of his election campaign in 2015, Donald Trump called the Mexicans in the United States rapists. That caused substantial anger in the southern neighbor. The American President announced the plan of the completion of building the wall during the campaign as well. According to his former plans, it would have been financed by Mexico. In his official response, the President of Mexico repeatedly rejected the idea of financing or building the wall.
Last autumn, the wall has been attacked with sledgehammers, pickaxes and cutting torches. However, it was not attacked by Mexicans, but American workmen. Several prototypes of the new wall have been introduced in San Diego. The applicant companies had to built a 9-meter-tall structure using steel columns and ferroconcrete. The most resistant one has been chosen, and it will protect the rest of the border.
According to Trump, the construction of the wall will cost 4 to 10 billion Dollars (nearly 1200-3000 billion Forints). However, architects and engineers estimate much higher costs. According to the journal of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the cost of the building of the whole 1609-kilometer-long wall is between 27 and 40 billion Dollars (between 8100 and 12000 billion Forints). The budget has to be accepted by the Congress.
