SAN JOSÉ, Feb 20, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Costa Rica will receive 50 children Thursday among 200 Asian migrants deported by the United States, President Rodrigo Chaves said, vowing to "treat them well."

Costa Rica, Panama and Guatemala have all agreed to receive migrants from other countries expelled by the United States and hold them until they are sent to their home nations or other host countries.

On Tuesday, Panama denied migrants it had received were not being held against their will, after some displayed handwritten signs at the windows of the hotel accommodating them with messages such as: "Please help us" and "We are not safe in our country."

On Wednesday, Chaves said "children are coming, 50 children, and we are going to treat them well here."

He did not say if the minors are accompanied by relatives.

The 200 deportees from Central Asia and India will be transported by bus from the capital San Jose to a migrant facility some 360 kilometers (223 miles) away, near the border with Panama.

The president said they would not be able to leave the facility and would remain in Costa Rica only as long as absolutely necessary, probably "four, five, six weeks."

Arrangements for their repatriation or dispatch to a third country would be handled by the US embassy in San Jose and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

All expenses will be covered by Washington, said Chaves.

Church groups in Costa Rica have expressed concern for the welfare of the arriving migrants.

Latin America is the original home of most of the United States' estimated 11 million undocumented migrants.

Many had made dangerous journeys, braving treacherous terrain, wild animals and criminal gangs for a chance at a better life.

Trump, however, took a hard line against undocumented migrants during last year's US election campaign, describing some as "monsters" and "animals."

On his first day in office last month, Trump declared a national emergency at the southern US border and vowed to deport "millions and millions" of migrants.