“Never Proposed to Close the Border”
Mexico City, Nov 28 (EFE).-
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum clarified on Thursday that she never proposed closing the border with the United States during a recent phone call with US President-elect Donald Trump.
Sheinbaum’s remarks came a day after Trump claimed that during their Wednesday call, the Mexican president had “agreed to stop migration through Mexico, and into the United States, effectively closing our Southern Border.”
“Everyone has their way of communicating, but I can assure you, with certainty, that we never (…) suggested that we were going to close the northern border (of Mexico) or the southern border of the United States. It has never been our position,” Sheinbaum said at a press conference.
She emphasized that Mexico has no plans to close its border with the US, adding that their conversation focused mainly on Mexico’s migration policy.
Sheinbaum defended her administration’s “comprehensive” approach to migration, citing a 75% reduction in daily encounters with undocumented migrants since December.
In addressing Trump’s recent threat to impose a 25% tariff on Mexican imports due to concerns over irregular migration and drug trafficking, Sheinbaum struck a conciliatory tone.
“There will be no potential tariff war” with the US, she said, despite a letter she sent to Trump on Tuesday warning of potential retaliation if new tariffs were implemented.
“We did not specifically discuss tariffs,” Sheinbaum said. “He stated that if certain reasons weren’t addressed, tariffs would be imposed. However, this was not a significant part of the discussion. It was a very cordial conversation.” EFE
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