Trump threatens to close Mexican border, deploy military to stop illegal immigrants

President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to close the US' southern border with Mexico and deploy the military to stop the flow of illegal immigrants from Central America.

In a series of tweets, Trump also threatened to stop all American financial assistance to countries like El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala from where illegal immigrants flow in, and blamed the opposition Democratic party for supporting such illegal migration.

"I am watching the Democrat Party-led (because they want Open Borders and existing weak laws) assault on our country by Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, whose leaders are doing little to stop this large flow of people, INCLUDING MANY CRIMINALS, from entering Mexico to US," Trump said in his first tweet.

"In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught - and if unable to do so I will call up the US military and CLOSE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER!" said the president in a strongly-worded tweet.

Trump said the assault on the US at its southern border, including the criminal elements and drugs pouring in, is far more important to him as president, than trade or the recently agreed upon US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

"Hopefully Mexico will stop this onslaught at their Northern Border. All Democrats' fault for weak laws!" he tweeted.

The tweets came as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to visit Mexico ahead of the December inauguration of President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, as well as Panama.