Canada and US agree to restrict asylum access and close border crossing.

The US and Canada have reportedly reached an agreement that will allow border officials to turn back asylum seekers heading north across their shared border without considering their petitions for sanctuary, sparking outcry from immigrant groups. The reported agreement expands a policy known as the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA). The agreement maintains that the US and Canada are both safe countries for refugees and that refugees must apply for asylum in whichever country they arrive in first.