Squire Patton Boggs has ironed out a five-year government relations pact worth $2.7M with the Dominican Republic, which has received heat over treatment of the estimated 525K migrant workers from Haiti.

According to the firm's July 10 engagement letter, SPB will develop and implement "a government relations strategy that would help the government maximize its Washington profile."

The firm reports to Jose Ramon Peralta, administrative minister to the presidency of the DR.

Impoverished Haiti and the more prosperous DR share the island of Hispaniola.

The migrants faced a June 17 deadline to register for legal residency or face the return to Haiti. Only a fraction of those who registered have qualified for legal residency.

Upon the request of Haiti and the DR, the Organization of American States dispatched a delegation this month to the DR gather information on the situation of Haitian migrants. Its goal is "to build bridges between the two countries in order to find a lasting solution to the dispute.”

Jose Tomas Perez, DR's US ambassador wrote a letter to the New York Times published July 5 which said: "Like many other countries around the world facing a large immigrant population, we must enforce the law and carry out return policies according to international norms, similar to those of the US."