Washington—Representative Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, today made the following statement regarding President Trump’s announcement that certain portions of U.S. assistance to the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras will resume:

“President Trump’s counterproductive decision to cut off assistance to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras has damaged our standing in the Americas while also stopping us from addressing the root causes of child and family migration. It has been a gift to countries like China and Russia who are eager to fill the large void left by the Trump Administration. That’s why there has been a complete bipartisan rejection of this effort.

“I was in El Salvador in March visiting critical programs that stop children and families from making the dangerous trek north when President Trump made the misguided announcement that hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. assistance would be cut. While certain portions of U.S. assistance to the Northern Triangle will resume, significant damage has already been done. $400 million in U.S. assistance to the Northern Triangle has been eliminated, and it remains to be seen precisely what assistance will be provided and if it will be tied to President Trump’s draconian immigration policies.

“I continue to call for the immediate and full restoration of U.S. assistance to the Northern Triangle.”

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