U.S. withdraws from U.N. migrant pact

Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The U.S. officials told the United Nations it would withdraw from a global agreement on the treatment of migrants because it is "inconsistent" with U.S. immigration policies.

The U.S. Mission to the United Nations made the notification Saturday, two days before the start of a global conference on migration in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

The United States signed the non-binding New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants in 2016 under President Barack Obama. Member states signing the pact pledged to uphold the rights of refugees, assist in resettlement, and provide access to education and jobs.

"The New York Declaration contains numerous provisions that are inconsistent with U.S. immigration and refugee policies and the Trump administration's immigration principles," a statement from the U.S. mission said. "As a result, President [Donald] Trump determined that the United States would end its participation in the Compact process that aims to reach international consensus at the U.N. in 2018."

On Friday, Trump also decided the United States would not participate in the Mexico talks, a three-day meeting on the New York Declaration and discuss humane ways of dealing with millions of migrants.

White House chief of staff John Kelly and Attorney General Jeff Sessions were in strong support of pulling out of the meeting, unnamed diplomatic sources told Foreign Policy magazine.

"America is proud of our immigrant heritage and our long-standing moral leadership in providing support to migrant and refugee populations across the globe," U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said in a statement Saturday. "But our decisions on immigration policies must always be made by Americans and Americans alone. We will decide how best to control our borders and who will be allowed to enter our country. The global approach in the New York Declaration is simply not compatible with U.S. sovereignty."