Sheinbaum claimed that Trump had contacted her about how he could combat organized crime and that he had suggested sending US troops during a press conference on Saturday.
The Mexican leader said she disagreed, saying, “We will never accept the presence of the United States army in our territory.”
Sheinbaum remarked, “No, President Trump, our territory is inviolable, our sovereignty is inviolable, and our sovereignty is not for sale.”
Her remarks come a day after Trump reportedly demanded from Mexico to allow for “more US military involvement” in the fight against drug cartels.
According to the news outlet, “tension rose” during a call between the two leaders on April 16 as Trump “pushed for the US armed forces to play a leading role in battling Mexican drug gangs that produce and smuggle fentanyl to the US.”
Trump has repeatedly criticised Mexico and Canada as the US’s other neighbor for their drug trafficking since taking office in January.
He claims that the two nations permit the entry of fentanyl, the most potent drug, into the US through their borders.
Along with other factors, Trump’s administration has linked fentanyl trafficking to its push to impose steep tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods.
Sheinbaum stated on Saturday that she had offered to work with Trump in addition to increasing the amount of information being shared.
The Mexican president claimed that at the same time, she had urged Trump to put an end to the wave of violence that has claimed more than 450,000 lives in Mexico over the past 20 years.
She continued, noting that Trump issued a Friday order to “make sure that everything necessary is in place to stop weapons from entering our country from the United States.”
Trump had made it crystal clear that Mexico must do more to combat these gangs and cartels, and that the US is prepared to help and bolster our already close cooperation, according to a spokesman for the US National Security Council.
Trump and Sheinbaum had collaborated closely to create the “most secure southwest border in history,” according to the spokesperson.
However, the spokesperson claimed that “dangerous foreign terrorist organizations continue to threaten our shared security and the drugs and crime they spread across the country.”
Despite numerous legal challenges to his strict anti-immigration policies, Trump has continued to push forward with his plan to carry out the “largest deportation operation” in US history.
To enforce immigration laws, the US Department of Defense announced earlier this week that it had designated a second stretch of the border with Mexico as a military zone.
The most recent area is located close to the El Paso Fort Bliss Army base in the US state of Texas.
Source: Aljazeera
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