Rwanda has agreed to take as many as 250 migrant deportees from the US, in a deal similar to one struck by the UK Government under the Conservatives. The agreement sees Rwanda agreeing with the Trump administration to take in some of the thousands of migrants it has detained.
“Rwanda has agreed with the United States to accept up to 250 migrants, in part because nearly every Rwandan family has experienced the hardships of displacement, and our societal values are founded on reintegration and rehabilitation,” said Yolande Makolo, a Rwandan government spokesperson.
Rwanda took the action in part to strengthen relations with Washington, according to a second Rwandan official, granted anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic relations.
“When you’re a small country, any time you can find a way consistent with your own policies and values, to be able to talk to a major country about something that it is interested in and not just asking them to take an interest in your issues, it just creates a more productive, obviously not equal, but a more balanced relationship and that’s good for both sides,” the official said, according to Politico.
This would not be the first deal Rwanda has struck to take in migrants that had travelled to other countries.
The Tories struck a deal with the African country in 2022 under which Kigali would accept migrants that had travelled to Britain illegally. The deal has since been scrapped.
Under the scheme, the migrants’ asylum claims would be processed and successful applicants could ultimately stay. The plan was axed by Sir Keir Starmer’s government after taking office.
Previous government had struggled to implement the deal after a slew of legal challenges.