- Liverpool boss Slot praises Alexander-Arnold's defensive work
- Barca coach backs Pena but will debate new goalkeeper signing
- UN says tens of thousands flee Lebanon strikes
- Asian stock markets lead rally on China stimulus
- Arteta stands by defensive tactics in fiery Man City clash
- Tropical Storm John hits Mexico's Pacific coast
- Sri Lanka's new leader appoints cabinet ahead of expected snap polls
- Singapore ex-minister convicted in rare graft trial
- UK town catches Subbuteo fever
- France facing 'one of worst deficits' in its history: minister
- China's Olympic champ Zheng embraces big home expectations
- Biden bids farewell to UN, in shadow of Trump
- All Blacks seek to end Wellington jinx, with Cane poised for 100th cap
- Postbank (Постбанк) анулює рахунки українців у Німеччині
- Meryl Streep says a 'squirrel has more rights' than an Afghan girl
- Postbank terminates accounts of Ukrainians in Germany
- Hong Kong, Shanghai lead markets rally after China stimulus
- Dutch paint giant Akzonobel slashes 2,000 jobs worldwide
- Sri Lanka's new leader to call snap parliamentary polls
- In Ukraine's Pokrovsk, some quietly waiting for Russian troops
- Singapore ex-minister pleads guilty in rare graft trial
- Fishy business caught by fraying India-Bangladesh ties
- US Open champion Sabalenka chases year-end number one ranking
- New Zealand scientists discover ghostly 'spookfish'
- Trump slams early voting, even while urging Pennsylvanians to do so
- Singapore ex-minister pleads guilty to bribery in rare graft trial
- Major Hurricane John hits Mexico's Pacific coast
- IMF says ready for talks with Sri Lanka's new leftist government
- Phillies clinch division title, eye top seed
- Bills trample Jaguars, Commanders claw Bengals
- China unveils fresh stimulus to boost ailing economy
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally on China stimulus on mixed day for markets
- Back to death row? Retrial verdict due in Japan murder saga
- Rare corruption trial of Singapore ex-minister begins
- Ghana a long way off from gender equality despite new law
- China unveils fresh stimulus to boost economy
- Hamas weakened, not crushed a year into war with Israel
- Israeli economy struggles under weight of Gaza war
- Israelis united in trauma, divided by war after October 7
- New York Liberty riding WNBA boom into playoffs
- Union says new Boeing pay offer 'missed the mark'
- Environmental groups urge EU 'high risk' label for Sarawak
- Argentina seeks Maduro's arrest for crimes against humanity
- Morales issues Bolivian president 24-hour ultimatum to shake up cabinet
- Armenia and Azerbaijan see progress, but peace treaty seems distant
- World leaders gather at UN as Mideast tensions explode
- Biden's UN goodbye aims to 'Trump-proof' legacy
- Singapore ex-minister set for high-profile corruption trial
- Man Utd, Spurs eye respite from domestic woes in Europa League
- Guatemala picks Supreme Court judges with focus on anti-graft fight
Blinken seeks 'strong' Latin American pact on migration
The United States is seeking a strong declaration to coordinate on rising migration when Latin American leaders meet in Los Angeles in June, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
Blinken is paying a two-day trip to Panama to meet regional counterparts as record numbers of people are displaced around the world -- causing not only a humanitarian crisis but growing political worries for President Joe Biden.
Blinken said the Panama talks aim to "lay the groundwork for a strong declaration by our leaders" at the June 6-10 Summit of the Americas in California.
Blinken called for a "Los Angeles Declaration on migration protection that sets forth our shared principles for a collaborative, coordinated response."
"We can make a profound difference in the lives of our most vulnerable fellow citizens and for the future of our region," he said.
Biden called the summit to highlight his agenda of promoting democracy, with autocratic rulers in the region expected to be excluded.
Nearly 100 million people around the world are displaced -- the most since World War II, with Ukrainians fleeing at a startlingly fast pace since Russia's deadly invasion in February.
Migration rates have been increasing for years in the Western Hemisphere, fueled by conflicts, poverty and disasters worsened by climate change.
US authorities in March apprehended more than 221,000 people on the Mexican border, the most for a single month in more than two decades, an issue sure to be highlighted by Biden's Republican rivals in November congressional elections.
But nations throughout the Americas have been coping with rising migration, largely coming from El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras and Venezuela.
Blinken, accompanied by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, renewed calls to focus on root causes of migration, including corruption, political repression and climate change.
But in the near term, he called for coordination to support the nations such as Colombia, Mexico, Panama and Costa Rica that are accommodating migrants.
"We know that no country -- no community -- can solve a challenge as complicated as irregular migration alone."
Panama, a close US partner that is home to the dangerous Durian Gap connecting North and South America, on Tuesday signed an agreement to step up coordination with the United States.
Panamanian Foreign Minister Erika Mouynes highlighted efforts taken by her country, including biometric tracking to identify criminals.
But she said the region needed to speak "with a single voice," including at multilateral institutions to secure shared funding.
"We pass this hard test only if we work on it together," she said.
F.Müller--BTB