The United States has reached an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo to receive migrants deported from America who hold no Congolese citizenship, a policy set to launch this month as part of Washington’s intensified border crackdown.
Kinshasa’s Ministry of Communication outlined the arrangement, noting that temporary facilities in the capital stand ready for arrivals. “Logistical and technical support” will be provided by the U.S., the ministry’s Sunday statement explained, with the Congolese government incurring no costs.
Since President Donald Trump took office, his administration has pursued a tough stance on immigration, redirecting dozens of individuals to third countries rather than their homelands. The U.S. State Department declined to elaborate on diplomatic communications with other governments but reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to end illegal and mass immigration and bolster America’s border security.
DRC authorities moved to quell concerns that these third-country nationals—people linked to neither the U.S. nor Congo—might face forced returns to places of potential persecution. No such repatriations are envisioned.
Instead, the deal underscores Kinshasa’s dedication to human dignity, global solidarity, and migrant protections. Officials stressed it does not represent a permanent relocation mechanism or an outsourcing of migration policies.
The DRC has not specified how many deportees it will accept, joining a growing list of African nations such as Eswatini, Ghana, South Sudan, and Rwanda in this role. Just last week, Uganda received eight people from assorted African countries.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have decried the strategy as legally dubious. A minority report from the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee pegs spending on these operations at over $40 million through January 2026, with the full amount unknown; more than $32 million flowed directly to hosts like Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini, and Palau.
This pact aligns with broadening U.S. ties to central Africa, where negotiations advance on a minerals agreement tapping Congo’s vast reserves of cobalt, lithium, copper, and tantalum—key to tech manufacturing.
Trump also mediated a DRC-Rwanda peace deal late last year, though implementation falters amid ongoing security issues. Responses across Africa range from Ghana’s humanitarian framing to South Sudan’s worries over capacity, as U.S. figures show more than 500 such deportations in the year’s first quarter.