Latest news with #USMexicoRelations
Jordan Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Jordan Times
Sensible and steely: how Mexico's Sheinbaum has dealt with Trump
MEXICO CITY — A combination of tact and tenacity is credited for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's successful dealings with US counterpart Donald Trump, most recently convincing him to delay a sky-high import tariff meant to come into effect last week. The pair are known to get along despite sitting on opposite sides of the political aisle, earning Mexico's first woman president the epithet of "Trump whisperer." At least three times now, the US president has granted Mexico tariff relief and Trump has described Sheinbaum as a "wonderful woman" to the envy of a host of other world leaders who have found exchanges with Trump can be tetchy. On Thursday, Trump agreed to delay by 90 days a 30 per cent general tariff on imported Mexican goods, just hours before it was to take effect. It was the outcome of the ninth phone conversation between the two leaders since Trump returned to power in January with a strong rhetoric against undocumented migrants and fentanyl flowing from America's southern neighbour. How did she do it? "With a cool head," the president herself told reporters Friday. The 63-year-old physicist and dedicated leftist added that she avoids "confronting" the magnate, all the while insisting on Mexico's sovereign rights in dealing with a man known to respect strong leaders. Sheinbaum has said that Mexicans should "never bow our heads" and Trump has acknowledged her mettle, remarking: "You're tough" in one phone call, according to The New York Times. "Mexico represents a lot to the United States... they are aware of that," Sheinbaum explained. 'Ability to convince' Thanks to the USMCA free trade agreement between Mexico, the United States and Canada, nearly 85 per cent of Mexican exports have been tariff-free. And while a 30 per cent general tariff has been delayed, for now, Mexico's vital automotive sector is the target of a 25 per cent levy, albeit with discounts for parts manufactured in the United States. Its steel and aluminium sectors, like those of other countries, are subject to a 50 per cent tariff. Mexico's government nevertheless claims the latest delay as a victory. "Without being sycophantic, I can tell you that the way our president handles her conversations, her approach, the firmness with which she defends Mexico's interests, her ability to convince President Trump, is very significant," Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard, who leads trade negotiations, told reporters Thursday. Give and take Sheinbaum seems also to have adopted a give and take approach, deploying thousands of border troops to assuage Trump's concerns about migration and drug flows. The president insists she has "not yielded anything" in negotiations with Trump, and talks are ongoing between the neighbours for a security agreement to tackle the problem of fentanyl and drug trafficking. Sheinbaum has also raised the possibility of importing more US products to reset the trade balance. Some fear the Mexican leader is merely buying time. The latest tariff delay "does not solve the issue of uncertainty; we return to the starting point," Diego Marroquin, a trade expert at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, told AFP.
Bloomberg
13-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Mexico Sure It Will Strike Deal With US to Skirt Tariffs
By and Kevin Whitelaw Updated on Save Mexico is projecting confidence that it will fend off a new set of 30% tariffs that President Donald Trump threatened Saturday to impose next month, with talks already underway to avert the worst. After Trump went public with his plan by posting on social media, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum noted in speeches near the northern border that every country has been getting a letter from Trump as he implements global protectionist policies. Her team had already begun discussions with the US on Friday and she was confident Mexico would get a deal.
Bloomberg
26-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Sheinbaum Disputes US Money Laundering Claims Against Mexican Banks
Mexico's president responded defiantly to US measures that could cripple three prominent local banks on accusations of potential money laundering tied to drug trafficking, arguing she's seen no evidence to support the crackdown. President Claudia Sheinbaum told reporters that Mexican finance officials have found no proof of wrongdoing in their own investigations of the financial firms the US Department of Treasury accused of illicit activity.
Washington Post
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
New US ambassador to Mexico formally arrives at time of busy binational agenda
MEXICO CITY — A former U.S. Army and CIA officer formally presented his credentials to Mexico's president Monday as the new United States ambassador to that country at a moment of increased U.S. pressure to fight the drug cartels and delicate trade negotiations. Amb. Ron Johnson, who served as ambassador to El Salvador during the first administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, met with President Claudia Sheinbaum at the National Palace along with his wife Alina Johnson. He left without making comments to the press.
Associated Press
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
New US ambassador to Mexico formally arrives at time of busy binational agenda
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A former U.S. Army and CIA officer formally presented his credentials to Mexico's president Monday as the new United States ambassador to that country at a moment of increased U.S. pressure to fight the drug cartels and delicate trade negotiations. Amb. Ron Johnson, who served as ambassador to El Salvador during the first administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, met with President Claudia Sheinbaum at the National Palace along with his wife Alina Johnson. He left without making comments to the press. A U.S. special forces veteran, Johnson formed a close bond with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, frequently appearing in the president's social media feed celebrating occasions outside of government functions. Johnson had been a U.S. military adviser in El Salvador during that country's civil war in the 1980s and pursued war criminals in the Balkans in the 1990s. His arrival in Mexico comes in the first year of Sheinbaum's presidency. She has shown greater willingness to take a harder stance against the country's powerful drug cartels than her predecessor and an ability to manage the sometimes erratic diplomacy of the Trump administration. Trump designated several Mexican cartels foreign terrorist organizations this year and U.S. prosecutors announced the first terrorism-related charges against people accused of working with the cartels last week. He has also announced and then suspended most tariffs on imports from Mexico. Immigration has been at the top of Trump's agenda, but the flow of migrants across the U.S. border that had already been falling in the final months of the Biden administration has slowed to a comparative trickle. Sheinbaum also recently announced that Mexico would increase the amount of water it sends to the Rio Grande in an attempt to make up a water debt to Texas farmers. The deadly wreck of a Mexican Navy tall ship with the Brooklyn Bridge Saturday adds one more binational issue to the relationship. Two sailors died and the incident is under investigation. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
