The United States has reached a controversial agreement with Palau that will allow the Pacific island nation to accept up to 75 deportees from the US in exchange for $7.5 million in foreign assistance, underscoring Washington’s growing reliance on third-country arrangements to enforce its immigration agenda.
Palau will allow “third-country nationals” who have not been accused of any crimes to reside and work there in accordance with the memorandum of understanding that both governments have signed. The agreement exists at a time when the Trump administration has increased its deportation efforts while declaring immigration enforcement as the main domestic security focus.
One of the smallest states to sign such an agreement with Washington is Palau, which has a population of between 17,000 and 18,000. The practice creates worries about local abilities to handle these operations, about the fairness of such arrangements, and about the broader effects of sending migration control responsibilities to countries that share strategic alliances.
Strategic incentives behind the agreement
According to statements from Palau’s president, Surangel Whipps Jr., the agreement is designed to address local labor shortages while providing additional funding for public services.
The US Embassy in Koror confirmed that Washington would provide $7.5 million to support Palau’s public sector, alongside $2 million for security advisers and $6 million for civil service pension reforms.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau discussed the arrangement directly with Whipps earlier this week, following months of negotiations. The Palau legislature turned down a similar US proposal during the first half of this year because they expressed concerns about losing sovereignty, and the social impacts of accepting immigrants without any connection to the country.
Washington controls strategic power in the western Pacific through its Compact of Free Association with Palau, which provides financial backing in exchange for military base access. Regional strategic control.
Expansion of US third-country deportation practices
The Palau deal fits into a broader pattern of US efforts to relocate migrants to countries other than their own—an approach that was rarely used in past decades but has expanded significantly under the Trump administration.
In recent years, the US has reached or explored similar arrangements with several countries.
The asylum cooperation agreements between Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador under the Trump administration allowed the United States to send migrants to Central American countries which were considered safe third countries. Human rights organizations strongly opposed this policy. The Trump administration eventually terminated it.
The United States has reportedly evaluated Rwanda as a possible destination to accept deportees after the United Kingdom established comparable agreements.
Both Panama and Costa Rica have participated in regional migration control initiatives supported by the United States, including hosting transit migrants, and asylum processing programs. The “Remain in Mexico” policy, together with Mexico, forces asylum seekers to stay outside United States territory during their application process.
Human rights advocates contend that these agreements expose migrants to uncertainty, weak legal protections, and insufficient oversight, while shifting moral and legal obligations away from the US.
Legal and human rights concerns
Amidst ongoing legal challenges to US deportation practices, the Palau agreement has come under scrutiny. The administration’s power to deport migrants to third countries without providing adequate notice or allowing them to voice concerns about torture or persecution stands at risk because a federal judge showed interest in reinstating these limits during the past week.
The transfer of migrants from Palau creates legal doubts because the country has not signed the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, according to the current status of Palau. The two governments state that relocated people will stay away from criminal prosecution, and gain employment opportunities, but critics doubt their legal rights and ability to access proper asylum procedures and equal legal treatment.
President Trump supports the approach because he believes it protects national security through his ongoing belief that strong border control will stop unauthorized immigration into the United States. Rights groups argue that the policy focuses on deterrence instead of legal procedures. This might lead to forced transfers becoming a common practice in states with inadequate institutional support.
Geopolitical implications in the Pacific
Beyond immigration policy, the agreement is part of Washington’s larger strategy to strengthen its position in the Pacific in the face of intensifying rivalry with China. Palau is an important strategic partner for the US military and one of Taiwan’s few surviving diplomatic allies.
The US strengthens its position as Palau’s main external patron by linking migration cooperation to financial and security support, while simultaneously pushing the boundaries of the amount of responsibility small partner states are willing to take on in return for aid.
