Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her administration received a “written” assurance from U.S. forces that military activities in the region last Friday wouldn’t go over the country.
She was making reference to the fact that last Friday the Federal Aviation Administration urged U.S. aircraft operators to “exercise caution” when flying over the eastern Pacific near Mexico and parts of Central America and South America.
Sheinbaum went on to note that the U.S. government didn’t give her administration a heads up about the operation, but the activities had no implications for the country.
It was one of two episodes involving the U.S. military that raised eyebrows in the country over the past days. The other one was the arrival of a U.S. military plane in the country, especially amid tensions with the Trump administration over threats to conduct unliteral actions against cartels.
Sheinbaum rejected that the plane was carrying U.S. troops or that the country would conduct military drills in national territory, and therefore didn’t need Senate approval. She noted that the plane carried nationals who had gone to the U.S. for training, adding that such operations have taken place in the past, with the only difference being that the plane landed in a non-military airport.
The clarification follows tense remarks from high-ranking Mexican and U.S. officials about the fight against cartels. Last week Sheinbaum reacted to a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who highlighted in a call with counterpart Juan Ramon de la Fuente the need to get “tangible results” in the fight against cartels in the country.
Speaking during her daily press conference, Sheinbaum said her government has achieved “very strong results” in the fight against criminal organizations. “There needs to be a shared responsibility,” she added.
The conversation also follows one between the countries’ presidents, Donald Trump and Claudia Sheinbaum, in which the former again suggested sending troops into Mexico to combat criminal organizations.
Sheinbaum said she rejected the proposal, adding that she told her counterpart that organized crime can’t be equated to terrorism and Mexico rejects any action that amounts to an intervention in the country.
Originally published on Latin Times
