By Kylie Madry
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Top Mexican officials said on Tuesday they were confident that Mexico could reach an agreement with the U.S. before threatened tariffs are due to take effect, with the U.S. demanding progress on fighting the flow of drugs and migrants to the shared border.
U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened both Mexico and Canada with 25% tariffs, but pushed their roll-out back by a month on Monday in exchange for promises from the two countries to tackle drugs and immigration.
“This month is more than enough to reach an agreement on these issues,” Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard told journalists, adding that Mexico and the U.S. were now on a more even playing field as they come to the negotiating table.
“Over the next few days, over the next few weeks, we can give strong evidence that Mexico is willing to keep collaborating,” Foreign Minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente said. “We have the same problems in common, and both countries will do much better if we face them together.”
One of Mexico’s initial concessions was to deploy 10,000 National Guard members to the border. The first troops were shipped out on Tuesday.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s approach to dealing with Trump’s threats – which she described as keeping a “cool head” – was lauded by analysts and politicians alike.
In contrast, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went on the offensive, listing retaliatory tariffs. It took Trudeau two phone calls with Trump to convince the U.S. leader to hold off on tariffs, while Sheinbaum managed it in one.
Now, Sheinbaum’s team will come to the negotiating table with demands of its own, according to Ebrard.
“For example, the issue of weapons,” Ebrard said. “Because fentanyl is talked about a lot, but who are the ones arming cartels?”
Mexico argues that more than half a million guns are trafficked annually into the country from the U.S., and it has sued U.S. gunmakers for their alleged complicity in the flow of weapons across the border.
Mexico will also discuss the issue of auto manufacturing and auto parts with the U.S., according to Ebrard. U.S. automakers have a heavy presence in Mexico and parts can cross the border several times as a car is made, which would cause consumer prices to skyrocket if tariffs were to be implemented.
(Reporting by Kylie Madry; Editing by Sarah Morland, Rosalba O’Brien and Leslie Adler)
