The Salvadoran government continues to frame what it portrays as a controversy with Venezuela, though in reality, it refuses to abandon its role as the preferred recipient of migrants deported by Donald Trump's administration. 

By Roberto Morejón 

The Salvadoran government continues to frame what it portrays as a controversy with Venezuela, though in reality, it refuses to abandon its role as the preferred recipient of migrants deported by Donald Trump's administration. 

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, a staunch ally of the discredited U.S. migration policies, suspiciously proposed a swap to Caracas. 

In his widely publicized offer, Bukele claimed he would release 252 Venezuelans held in a maximum-security prison—deported from the United States—in exchange for a similar action by the Venezuelan government. 

The offer, bearing the stamp of the U.S. State Department, was rejected by President Nicolás Maduro. 

Venezuela, in turn, demanded that El Salvador release the 252 detainees, who were accused by Trump without evidence of belonging to the illegal group Tren de Aragua. 

Venezuela is fighting tenaciously for these compatriots to return to Caracas, but Bukele refuses to relinquish his obligations to Secretary Marco Rubio. 

Bukele had committed to receiving migrants deported by Washington, even under deplorable and humiliating conditions. 

The controversy sparked by the Salvadoran leader's proposal of an illegal and morally unacceptable swap, as emphasized by Venezuela, follows denials regarding the alleged affiliation of the prisoners with the Tren de Aragua. 

In Caracas, officials assert that this organized crime group has been dismantled, though Trump stubbornly insists on his version, which was challenged by an investigation published in *The Washington Post*. 

The newspaper referred to an analysis almost unanimously endorsed by 18 intelligence agencies, concluding that tattoos were not a definitive factor in identifying someone as a member of the Tren de Aragua—contrary to claims by Trump's spokespeople. 

This is not the only element discrediting Trump's arbitrary concepts. The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) filed legal challenges against the U.S. government's use of the Alien Enemies Act against the alleged group, rather than against a recognized state. 

It should also be noted that the U.S. administration, particularly Marco Rubio, has made Venezuela a primary target of attacks. 

Hence, there are speculations that both Washington and San Salvador, in mutual agreement, are ultimately seeking to maneuver against the Bolivarian Revolution.