WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he plans to appoint Mark Morgan, a border patrol chief under former President Barack Obama who supports Trump's border wall, to head the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

"I am pleased to inform all of those that believe in a strong, fair and sound Immigration Policy that Mark Morgan will be joining the Trump Administration as the head of our hard working men and women of ICE," Trump wrote on Twitter.

Morgan, who headed border patrol for six months, came out in support of Trump's border wall in January.

Trump's hardline immigration policy is likely to be a top issue in the 2020 presidential election. The wall has been one of Trump's top goals since the 2016 campaign, but has so far failed to materialize amid opposition from Democrats and lack of an agreement on how to fund it.

Reuters