The President of the United States, Donald Trump, spoke by phone with his counterpart from El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, to discuss issues related to the fight against illegal immigration and criminal gangs such as the Tren de Aragua, which operates in several Latin American countries. The White House reported that during the call, Trump praised Bukele's leadership in the region and highlighted his example for other nations in the Western Hemisphere.
Bukele, one of the Latin American leaders invited to Trump's inauguration, shares a populist approach with the U.S. president regarding crime and a mutual interest in cryptocurrencies. Despite the invitation, Bukele ultimately did not attend Trump's inauguration ceremony. Relations between El Salvador and the United States relaxed during Joe Biden's administration, which had questioned the legitimacy of the legal path that would allow Bukele's re-election, despite the constitutional prohibition in El Salvador.
Currently, more than two million Salvadorans reside in the United States and are an important pillar of El Salvador's economy through the remittance flow that exceeds $7 billion a year. Although the conversation with Bukele was Trump's first known official communication with a foreign leader since taking office, he reserved his first phone call for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
