BOSTON -- Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry said Wednesday that the wife of a missing soldier in Iraq should not have to worry about being deported because she doesn't have a green card.

NewsCenter 5's Jack Harper reported that the federal government said it has no plans to deport the wife of Army Spc. Alex Jimenez despite the fact that Yderlin Jimenez entered the country illegally in 2001.

Alex Jimenez has been missing for more than a month after his unit was ambushed. The Lawrence soldier's wife is in the U.S. illegally.

"I don't think that's the way you say thank you to the wife of an American serviceman who is now missing in action and whose whereabouts is unknown," Kerry said. "I think it's not the way to say to anybody, 'We are grateful for your service to our country, particularly if you may have given your live.' There is something rough about it and inappropriate and indecent. I think most Americans would say, 'Whoa. What are we doing here? She deserves some peace of mind.'"

"It's a difficult situation for his wife to go through all this. I mean, it brings out the two critical issues in this nation -- immigration and the conflict," family friend Wendy Luzon said.

Since her husband's disappearance Yderlin Jimenez has been with relatives in Pennsylvania. Her friends said that the marriage should give her the right to stay in the country.

"It seems shocking. A lot of people have been calling my office like they do on a daily basis to see any updates, but today, people are really shocked to see the outcome of what is going on and the bad timing of it," Veterans Affairs Officer Francisco Urena said.