US military plane deporting Indian immigrants lands in India
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The Trump administration has increasingly turned to the military to help carry out its immigration agenda.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
AMRITSAR, India – A US military plane carrying illegal Indian immigrants landed in India’s northern city of Amritsar on Feb 5, a Reuters witness said, deporting an unspecified number of people as part of President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.
Some local media outlets reported that the flight was carrying 205 people back, while others put the number at 104, and said that they were mainly from the northern state of Punjab, where Amritsar is located, and the western state of Gujarat.
The Trump administration has increasingly turned to the military to help carry out its immigration agenda, using military aircraft to deport migrants
Although illegal Indian immigrants have been deported home by previous US administrations, this is the first time Washington has used a military aircraft for the purpose. It is also the farthest destination so far for such flights using a military aircraft.
Reuters reported on Feb 4 that the C-17 aircraft with migrants on board had departed for India but would not arrive for at least 24 hours. The flight did not show up on public flight trackers, but local TV news channels showed the aircraft taxiing after it landed in Amritsar.
Migration has been among the key issues discussed by India and the US since Mr Trump took charge in January, and is also expected to come up during his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, likely to take place in Washington next week.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also emphasised the Trump administration’s desire to work with India to address “concerns related to irregular migration” when he met Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in January.
New Delhi has since said it will take back such illegal immigrants after verifying their details.
The US is India’s largest trading partner and the two countries are forging deeper strategic ties as they look to counter China.
India is also keen to work with the US to make it easier for its citizens to get skilled workers’ visas.
The Pentagon has said it plans to deport more than 5,000 migrants held by the US authorities, and Reuters reported last week that a flight to Guatemala used for the purpose most likely cost at least US$4,675 (S$6,300) for each migrant. REUTERS
