Russians are blocked at US border, Ukrainians are admitted
By ELLIOT SPAGAT
TIJUANA, Mexico
About three dozen would-be asylum seekers from Russia were blocked from entering the U.S. while a group of Ukrainians flashed passports and were escorted across the border. The scene Friday reflected a quiet but unmistakable shift in disparate treatment of Russians and Ukrainians who enter Mexico as tourists and fly to Tijuana, hoping to enter the U.S. for a chance at asylum. A U.S Homeland Security Department memo tells border officials that Ukrainians may be exempt from sweeping asylum limits designed to prevent spread of COVID-19. It makes no mention of Russians.
