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The Pentagon is sending about 320 more troops to the southwestern border, and although they will interact with migrants, they will not arrest or detain anyone, a Defense Department spokesman said on Monday.

“In any situation that requires DoD personnel to be in proximity to migrants, DHS [Department of Homeland Security] law enforcement personnel will be present to conduct all custodial and law enforcement functions, and provide force protection of military personnel,” said Army Lt. Col. Jamie Davis.

Instead, the new troops will transport migrants, perform legal functions, and provide food and heat to those in the custody of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel who actually perform law enforcement functions at the border, Davis said.

Currently, about 2,900 active-duty and 2,000 National Guardsmen are deployed along the U.S.-Mexico border to string concertina wire and build barricades to help civil authorities, Davis said.

Separately, President Donald Trump plans to use $6.1 billion from the Defense Department counter-narcotics and military construction funds to build a wall along the border.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan has tasked the Pentagon's comptroller with identifying which military construction projects could be delayed to pay for the wall by May 10.

SEE ALSO: The Army Just Awarded $976 Million In Contracts For Border Wall Construction

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Jeff Schogol
Jeff Schogol

Jeff Schogol is a senior staff writer for Task & Purpose. He has covered the military for 15 years, with previous bylines at the Express-Times in Easton, Pennsylvania, Stars & Stripes, and Military Times. You can email him at schogol@taskandpurpose.com, direct message @JeffSchogol on Twitter, or reach him on WhatsApp and Signal at 703-909-6488. Contact the author here.