U.S., Mexican officials agree to talk again after 'very productive' meeting

Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Senior U.S. and Mexican officials agreed to keep talking after a high-stakes meeting on migration at the border on Wednesday.

U.S. officials called the Mexico City meeting, which included Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, "very productive."

"[Mexico] came prepared to share a plan with us on how they were taking the work that they are already doing," a senior White House official said.

"We have seen in recent days a pretty significant reduction in border crossings. So again, this is not something that the U.S. and Mexico will be able to address on or off on their own. So, I would say the majority of our conversation actually focused on work that we're doing together in the region."

Mexican leaders will travel to Washington in January to meet Biden Cabinet officials to continue discussions on slowing the illegal migration, according to the U.S. National Security Council. That meeting will "assess progress and decide what more can be done," the council said.

Border officials are reporting thousands of illegal border crossings daily in what has become a political liability for President Joe Biden.

"The regional challenge of migration requires regional solutions and we appreciate Mexico's commitment to continue its efforts alongside us and with others," Mayorkas wrote on X, formerly Twitter, after the bilateral meeting.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador stressed in his social media message that any deals have to come with mutual cooperation and the benefit of the United States and Mexico.

"Important agreements were reached for the benefit of our people and nations," Lopez Obrador said on X. "Now more than ever, a good neighbor policy is essential."

Wednesday's meeting was a continuation of diplomacy over the immigration issue, started by Biden's phone call with Lopez Obrador last week, where the two agreed that urgent action along the border was needed.

Lopez Obrador expressed the need to tackle the root causes of the surge from Latin America into Mexico and the United States to get a true handle on the crisis.