A U.S. military aircraft carrying Indian nationals who were in the United States illegally landed in Amritsar, India, on Wednesday, as part of President Donald Trump's immigration efforts. Reports vary on the number of individuals onboard, with some sources mentioning 205 while others stating 104, predominantly from the states of Punjab and Gujarat.
The deployment of military resources for immigration actions is a shift by the Trump administration, utilizing military planes to repatriate migrants and accommodating them in military facilities. While previous administrations have repatriated illegal Indian immigrants, this marks the first instance of using a military aircraft, with Amritsar being the furthest destination reached by such flights.
Discussions on migration have been a focal point in U.S.-India relations under the Trump administration, including talks during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming visit to Washington next week. In this context, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed the administration's interest in collaborating with India to address migration concerns during a meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
India, aiming to streamline processes for its citizens to obtain , is working closely with the U.S. The Pentagon plans to repatriate over 5,000 migrants in U.S. custody, with recent reports estimating a cost of approximately $4,675 per migrant for a similar deportation flight to Guatemala.