After Donald Trump's inauguration, his administration asked a number of countries to accept third-country nationals deported from the United States. Among these countries was Ukraine, a country that has been waging a full-scale war with Russia for more than two years and is critically dependent on Western aid.
This was reported by The Washington Post , citing documents reviewed by journalists.
The American side did not specify in its appeal either the specific number of people to be accepted or the citizenship of the deportees. However, according to two Ukrainian officials, this initiative never reached the highest government level and was effectively ignored.
A representative of the Ukrainian diplomatic corps handed the US embassy a formal response: Kyiv would announce its position as soon as it was formulated. But, as WP notes, no response was ever received. Ukraine has not accepted a single deportee from third countries, and there are no signs that such a proposal was seriously discussed.
Interestingly, similar appeals were also made to the governments of Mexico, El Salvador, Panama, and Costa Rica during the same period. Some of them agreed, others did not. According to journalists, the Trump administration acted either through encouragement (financial assistance, invitations to the White House) or through blackmail: tariff threats, diplomatic pressure, and even hints at revising international agreements.
In the case of El Salvador, the Trump administration paid millions of dollars to hold deportees in notorious prisons. And in the case of Panama, it threatened to review the status of the Panama Canal.
The US State Department said in a statement that the steps were part of efforts to combat mass illegal immigration and protect US borders. However, the Department of Homeland Security, which is believed to have directly initiated the requests, did not comment on the situation.
History shows how even US allies can find themselves faced with delicate or uncomfortable propositions when it comes to Washington’s domestic political priorities. In the case of Ukraine, a state that defends its independence every day has effectively prevented humanitarian security interference, despite its dependence on US support.
