El Salvador President Nayib Bukele offered to house convicted criminals who are American citizens in his nation's "mega-prison" after meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Breitbart reported. This marks a victory for Rubio on his first foreign visit in the role.
Rubio recently revealed the advantageous terms after his visit to El Salvador to meet with the leader. The agreement was also confirmed in Bukele's post to X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.
"We have offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system. We are willing to take in only convicted criminals (including convicted U.S. citizens) into our mega-prison (CECOT) in exchange for a fee. The fee would be relatively low for the U.S. but significant for us, making our entire prison system sustainable," Bukele wrote.
A Relationship Restored
Rubio championed the agreement he brokered with Bukele. Rubio said it was "the most unprecedented, extraordinary, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world" for Bukele to make such an offer.
"He’s also offered to do the same for dangerous criminals currently in custody and serving their sentence in the United States even though they’re U.S. citizens or legal residents," Rubio added. A "senior Trump admin official" further stated that "El Salvador has agreed to accept U.S. deportations of any nationality, including violent criminals."
As Trump has ramped up deportations, some nations have refused to take back their citizens. Reuters reported that Colombia initially refused its own citizens deported from the U.S. until quickly relenting after Trump threatened tariffs and sanctions.
Bukele's offer likely comes because of his mutual respect for Trump due to their prior dealings. After President Joe Biden took office, he torpedoed that relationship.
Trump recently rekindled the commitment he had with Bukele to pursue the gangs and stop illegal immigration into the U.S. An American official made it clear that although the Trump administration felt it Bukele's offer was "significant," there are currently no "plans to try to deport American citizens."
El Salvador Prisons
Bukele takes great pride in his mega-prison as a key factor in tamping down crime in El Salvador, the Associated Press reported. He opened the Terrorism Confinement Center in 2023 as a way to crack down on violent gangs.
The conditions are intentionally harsh, with some prisoners being isolated and others subjected to vast overcrowding. Rather than focus on ideas like education and rehabilitation, the time there is meant to be a severe punishment as a deterrent to crime.
In 2023, Bukele touted its effectiveness. "El Salvador has managed to go from being the world’s most dangerous country, to the safest country in the Americas," he posted to X at the time.
"How did we do it? By putting criminals in jail. Is there space? There is now," Bukele said.
Rubio did a great job smoothing things over with El Salvador, and it appears the nation's leader is ready to help out. The left will balk at such an offer from Bukele, but the fact that he made it speaks volumes about the unprecedented clout of the Trump administration.
