US Vice President Kamala Harris pledged to visit the United States’ southern border on Tuesday after criticism from Republican politicians in particular.

“I have been there and will go again,” she said on Tuesday, after meeting Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Republicans criticized Harris for visiting the interior of Mexico and Guatemala during her first international visit as vice president rather than going to the border region. Harris did not explain when she last visited the border and when her next visit will be.

US President Joe Biden has asked Harris to tackle illegal immigration on the US southern border. The vice president says that he mainly focuses on tackling the root causes of immigration.

Multiple Republicans called on the vice president to go to the border for her first international trip to see the situation there for herself. Illegal migration on the southern border of the US has recently reached its highest level in 20 years, and urgent help is needed.

The vice president defended her choice to go inland by saying she wants to tackle the root of the migration problems. “You can’t say you care about the boundary if you don’t care about root causes,” Harris said.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki also emphasized that Harris’ job is to target Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. “Her job was to work with these countries and their leaders to address root causes, tackle corruption, and of course we work together to address humanitarian concerns,” Psaki said at the White House. “We do not take advice from former President Trump or most Republicans who criticize us for this.”