Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele revealed Wednesday that he has received a personal invitation from President Trump to visit the White House on April 14.
“Your support of my efforts to combat illegal immigration is greatly appreciated,” Trump wrote in the letter shared by Bukele on X. “For far too long, our southern border has been an open door.”
“With the assistance of friends like you, we have made great progress in protecting Americans from illegal border activity.”
Trump went on to praise Bukele for offering to hold suspected gang members deported from the US in El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT).
“Also of great importance to our partnership is your willingness to use El Salvador’s new supermax prison for Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gang members,” Trump wrote. “You have shown real leadership and are a model for others seeking to work with the United States.”
Some 250 suspected gang members – affiliated with groups the president has designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations – have been shipped to the hellish prison since the Trump administration struck a $6 million deal with Bukele to use the facility for a year.
Seventeen alleged Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gangbangers were handed over to El Salvador as recently as Sunday night.
Bukele shared a dramatic video on X Monday showing the shackled men being loaded off a plane, having their heads shaved and being crammed into prison cells.
“All individuals are confirmed murderers and high-profile offenders, including six child rapists,” Bukele wrote in the tweet. “This operation is another step in the fight against terrorism and organized crime.”
Trump’s invite letter was dated April 1 – the day after Bukele accepted the latest wave of deported migrants. The president noted that he hopes to discuss the recent cooperation between the US and El Salvador and “other ways we can support each other.”
Secretary of Homeland Security Krisi Noem revealed earlier this week that during her recent trip to El Salvador, Bukele indicated that he’s willing to take in more criminal migrants.
“He said, ‘Absolutely, we will. We will take the worst of the worst and make sure that they’re facing consequences for what they’ve done to your country’,” Noem told Fox News “Special Report” host Bret Baier.
