Overview
- Excavation began near the Chacalluta crossing in Arica, where machinery is digging a trench about three meters deep along the Peru border.
- Residents and merchants in the Arica–Tacna corridor voiced mixed reactions, with some warning of trade disruptions and others supporting tighter controls.
- The government says physical protections could span roughly 500 kilometers across northern frontiers with Peru and Bolivia.
- Measures also include expanded military deployments and surveillance technology such as drones, sensors, and cameras at known clandestine routes.
- Similar works are planned near Colchane in Tarapacá, as officials cite about 337,000 people in irregular status even as irregular entries have fallen since 2021.