U.S. National Guard Forces Deployed to the Mexico Border

A few days after Donald Trump's announcement of a plan to use military forces to secure borders, the National Guard of the United States in Texas announced the deployment of 250 personnel to the southern Texas-Mexico border. According to Reuters, citing the Texas National Guard, these personnel will be deployed to the Mexico-Texas border within the next 72 hours. In this context, the governor of Arizona also announced on Friday the deployment of 150 National Guard troops to the Mexico border next week. Reports indicate that the command of the National Guard for border protection will be under the authority of each state's governor. The construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and charging Mexico for its construction was one of Donald Trump's main campaign promises during the presidential race. However, more than a year after his victory in the presidential election, Trump has not fully secured the budget for it from Congress nor has he been able to compel the Mexican government to pay for the wall. This led Trump to emphasize last Tuesday that he is determined to build the border wall and intends to station some U.S. military personnel at the border until the wall is fully constructed and to ensure 'border security to prevent the entry of illegal immigrants.' In this regard, reports indicate that James Mattis, the Secretary of Defense under Trump, signed an order on Friday to fund 4,000 National Guard troops until the end of September this year. However, Reuters quotes a National Guard commander stating that the precise details of this mission, the number of deployed personnel, and the costs of this plan are still unclear. According to a joint statement from the U.S. Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security, the U.S.-Mexico border has security gaps and weaknesses that the National Guard can help address. However, according to Kirstjen Nielsen, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the National Guard personnel will not be involved in the enforcement of laws and will primarily play a 'supporting role.' The use of military forces in the border area with Mexico is not unprecedented. From 2006 to 2008, former President George W. Bush allowed National Guard troops to be stationed for intelligence operations at the Mexico border. In 2010, Barack Obama also ordered some National Guard troops to be stationed at the Mexico border to provide intelligence and operational assistance to border forces. The President of Mexico criticized the U.S. President's stance again last Thursday and expressed disapproval of the military deployment plan. In this context, two U.S. senators proposed a plan to reform immigration law, and a vote in Congress ended a brief government shutdown. Trump stated, 'Now is the time to invest in America,' and reiterated that military forces will be stationed at the Mexico border until the wall is completed.