Mexican immigration officials will begin checking the documents of those intending to enter the United States by car through the San Isidro crossing in Tijuana. Mexican authorities will cut off those who clearly do not have the necessary documentation to cross the border, although the stated goal — speed up border crossings for those who have the right to do so. For their part, U.S. officials say that Mexico's border control will allow them to redirect resources to opening more highway lanes.
Control on the Mexican side will last from November 15 to January 15, 2023. During this time, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) must streamline its operations and increase capacity, both by opening new lanes and by providing faster border crossing services.
Until now, Mexico has had virtually no control over border crossings on its side. Starting in 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is stationing officers at what it calls a "borderline," a yellow line marked on the ground with raised ridges, to check whether drivers and their passengers have documents to enter the United States. This initial screening point is located just a few minutes away from the booths where other CBP personnel conduct a complete background check of travelers and determine whether they are eligible to enter the United States.
There has been such double control on the American side of the border at least since last summer. It is considered a necessary measure in response to the numerous border crossings by migrants who seek to enter the United States using cars with American license plates. In this context, “Russians” are most often mentioned, or more precisely, people from the expanses of the former USSR. Unable to legally enter the United States, they buy cars with American license plates, pretend to be Americans and try to get through the yellow line. There you need to have time to jump out of the car, run up to the booths and ask for asylum in the United States. Asylum seekers, most often, you must already be in the United States to begin the legal process to seek protection in the United States. Officers along the yellow line do not physically have the right to conduct a total check of papers, therefore some manage to get through, if not the first time, then the second or seventh.
Those turned away are handed over to Mexican immigration officials. They have the right to confiscate a car for illegally driving an uncleared vehicle in Mexico, and place passengers at a migration station and then deport them. But migration stations are overcrowded, deportation takes time, and therefore illegal immigrants are often given orders to leave Mexico within 20 days and released. In addition, you are always allowed to pay off and even buy your car back from the impound lot. This will count as a chance to try to cross the border again.
Now Mexican migration service personnel will check suspicious cars around the clock even at the entrance to San Isidro. The number of detainees is likely to increase, since checks give Mexicans the opportunity to independently control the entire flow of migrants and not wait for the Americans to hand over someone to them. Accordingly, corruption will only intensify.
Officials from Mexico's National Institute of Migration (INM) said the checks will be carried out by its officers, accompanied by the Tijuana Minicipal Police, the Baja California State Police and Mexico's National Guard. Those who do not have the proper paperwork to enter the United States will be taken to an immigration facility for inspection. According to the INM representative, only Institute officials will have the right to request documents, which, however, does not imply that documentation will be required from every traveler. Rather, they will look for «suspicious cars».
Although crossing the US border illegally by car can be a risky adventure — Some of these migrants were prosecuted after a confrontation with police officers standing at the border line and a police officer shooting into a car in December 2021 - this route to the US remains attractive enough for those with enough money to buy or rent a car in Tijuana. As rumors spread about the possibility of getting into the United States through automobile crossings, many Russian-language channels appeared on YouTube, telling how to summarize how to get to the United States. The war in Ukraine and its consequences only increased the flow of Ukrainians and Russians wanting to get to the United States by any means.
Despite Mexico's previous reluctance to help Americans with their migration policies, it is now forced to listen to United States criteria as it itself suffers from a huge influx of migrants. Either way, Mexico is trying to prevent asylum seekers and other migrants from reaching the United States, from deploying troops at both its borders to changing visa requirements for Brazilians, Venezuelans and Ecuadorians. Most recently, Mexico agreed to allow the United States to expand the number of nationalities that can be deported back to Mexican soil after crossing into the United States to include Venezuelans. However, checks at the entrance to the US border will not solve the global problem — The flow of migrants into the United States through Mexico continues to grow, and many of them are using much riskier routes to reach America, through the border wall, through deserts, mountains and rivers…