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El Salvador, February 04 (ANI): United Sates Secretary of State Marco Rubio met El Salvador President Nayib Bukele on Monday (February 3) as he continues a trip aimed at persuading Latin American countries to do more to stem migration to the U.S. southern border. Rubio met with Bukele and El Salvador's foreign minister at Bukele's residence on Lake Coatepeque just outside the capital. Bukele, asked after their meeting if the two countries had reached a new "safe third country" agreement for the U.S. to deport migrants from other nations to El Salvador, said they were finalizing an "even larger" agreement, without providing details. He said Rubio would later announce the agreement. Bukele is seen by the Trump administration as a key ally in its migration efforts in the region. The Salvadoran president has launched an unflinching security crackdown in his country, arresting more than 80,000 people, and bringing the number of homicides down sharply. His policies are credited by Washington with reducing the number of Salvadorans seeking to enter the U.S. illegally. Rubio, a former U.S. senator from Florida, said ahead of the meeting that he had known Bukele for a long time, and praised him for doing "an excellent job of providing security and stability." The U.S. is also pushing Bukele to shun investment from China, which is in talks with El Salvador over a free trade agreement, has funded public projects like a soccer stadium, and has invested in the telecommunications sector. Since taking office on Jan. 20, the Trump administration has stepped up the number of migrants the U.S. deports to Latin America, including using military planes for repatriation flights. Rubio began Monday in Panama, where he watched 43 Colombian migrants who had crossed the Darien Gap, likely bound for the U.S., board an Air Panama charter flight back to Colombia. Rubio began his tour of Latin America, visiting Panama and El Salvador on Monday. He will then visit Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.