United States: On Thursday, Mexican senior officials of national security and diplomacy will participate in talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, according to President Claudia Sheinbaum, who made this announcement on Wednesday amid growing tensions between both nations about drug cartels and immigration.
High-Level Meeting in Washington Amid Diplomatic Strains
Sheinbaum announced the entire security cabinet under her administration will participate in meetings at Washington D.C. alongside the foreign minister, Army and Navy leaders, security chief, and attorney general, as reported by Reuters.
The preparations for the talks extended over multiple days until the leftist leader announced that her diplomatic representatives would pursue agreements that maintain Mexican sovereignty.
Several drug cartels from Mexico became terrorist organizations according to U.S. administration decisions which raised concerns about U.S. unilateral strikes against Mexican soil.
Concerns Over Cartels and U.S. Tariffs
United States President Donald Trump plans to issue 25% blanket tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods beginning next week unless these countries fail to stop the drug and migrant flow into America.
Trade Agreement Renegotiation on the Horizon
Trump’s U.S. tariff ultimatum occurred as the nations prepared to modify the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement he negotiated when he was president in his first term. The Mexican government leader Sheinbaum declared a renegotiation of the trade agreement will occur before its scheduled revision in 2026.
Mexico has requested joint coordination with the United States while asking the country to restrict illegal gun exports that end up in criminal groups’ hands, as reported by Reuters.
Focus on Joint Security and Fentanyl Crisis
Sheinbaum declared that Mexico’s government seeks to stop fentanyl from entering the United States as well as Mexico and the rest of the world while she discussed plans for meetings in Tijuana where officials would tackle its high homicide rate.