Reacting to calls for him to visit the Texas-Mexico border to deal with the ongoing child migrant crisis, President Barack Obama said his critics should not let politics get in the way of solving the problem.

Reuters reported that Obama made the statement after discussing with Texas Governor Rick Perry the issue on handling the surge of children from Central America illegally crossing the border into the U.S. from Mexico.

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Perry said the president should travel to the border to have a first-hand look at the situation.

But Obama dismissed the Republican leader's call, saying, "This isn't theater. This is a problem. I'm not interested in photo ops. I'm interested in solving a problem."

Referring to his critics, Obama said he told the Texas governor, "Are folks more interested in politics or are they more interested in solving the problem? If they are interested in solving the problem then this can be solved. If the preference is for politics then it won't be solved."

The meeting with Perry took place aboard the presidential Marin One helicopter.

Obama also held talks with local officials, which he described as constructive.

In a report on child migrants to the U.S., the Guardian newspaper said large numbers of unaccompanied minors are arriving at the Texas border not only from Mexico but also from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.

There has been a dramatic increase in the number of child migrants from these Central American countries in recent years, according to the Guardian.

Obama said critics of his administration should help solve the problem by supporting his request for US $3.7 billion in emergency funds to end the humanitarian crisis.

The Democrat-led Senate and the Republican-dominated House of Representatives must approve the president's funding request, said Republican Representative Mario Diaz-Balart.

"The House is not going to just rubber-stamp what the administration wants to do," he said, signaling that approval might not come easily.

TagsU.S. immigration policy, child migrants, humanitarian crisis, U.S. border, Barack Obama, Texas, Mexico, Gov. Rick Perry