President Trump has responded to comments by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who said that she rejected an offer by President Trump to let the US Army hunt cartels on Mexican soil.
On Saturday, Sheinbaum told supporters in Eastern Mexico about Trump’s offer;
“In one of the calls, the U.S. President Donald Trump said it was important for the U.S. Army to enter Mexico to help us in the fight against drug trafficking. And I want to say that’s true. In some of the calls, he said, quote, ‘How can we help you fight drug trafficking? I propose that the U.S. Army come in to help you.’ And you know what I told him? ‘No, President Trump, the territory is sacrosanct. Sovereignty is sacrosanct. Sovereignty is not for sale. Sovereignty is loved and defended.'” she said, one day after Trump claimed “She is so afraid of the cartels she can’t even think straight.”
On Sunday, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he made the offer because the drug cartels were “horrible people” who caused thousands of deaths.
“If Mexico wanted help with the cartels, I would be honored to go in and do it,” he said.
When asked if he was disappointed that Sheinbaum turned down his offer, Trump replied, “I think she’s a lovely woman. The president of Mexico is a lovely woman, but she is so afraid of the cartels that she can’t even think straight.“
“La presidenta de México es una mujer encantadora, pero tiene tanto miedo de los Cárteles de la Droga que no puede pensar bien”
Trump sobre Sheinbaum pic.twitter.com/VUnoUddvls
— GONZALO OLIVEROS (@goliveros) May 5, 2025
Trump’s proposal was first reported last week by the Wall Street Journal, which detailed tensions between Trump and Sheinbaum towards the end of a 45-minute telephone conversation on April 16.
While both countries have cooperated on certain security issues, including allowing U.S. drone flights to identify fentanyl labs, Sheinbaum has consistently rejected any form of military intervention from the United States in Mexican soil. “We don’t accept invasions or interference,” she said last month. “We are not a protectorate or colony of any foreign country.”
However, some in the Trump administration are reportedly considering launching drone strikes on drug cartels in Mexico anyway, the Crisis Group detailed last week. If the decision is ultimately carried out , it would be the first time since 1914 that the U.S. conducts unilateral military action in Mexico. “Some officials in Washington appear to be laying the groundwork for military action against drug trafficking organizations in Mexican territory, with – or without – Mexico’s consent,” the Crisis Group said in a passage of its analysis from last week. –Latin Times
“We can work together, but you in your territory and us in ours,” said Sheinbaum.
As the Epoch Times notes further, in a Jan. 31 interview with Fox News, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth left open the possibility of U.S. military action in Mexico.
Responding to Hegseth’s comments just days later, Sheinbaum insisted that her country’s sovereignty be respected.
In early February, Sheinbaum agreed to mobilize 10,000 Mexican troops to assist in an expanded effort to counter cross-border trafficking. Trump agreed to delay a planned 25 percent tariff on Mexico as a show of goodwill following Sheinbaum’s troop deployment decision.
By mid-February, the U.S. State Department designated six Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, along with the El Salvador-based MS-13 and the Venezuela-based Tren de Aragua.
The terror designations provide more avenues for the U.S. government to target the finances of these transnational criminal organizations. They also raise the possibility of military action.
Following the terror designations, Sheinbaum reiterated her opposition to any U.S. intrusion into Mexico’s territory.
Mexican authorities arrested Humberto Rivera, a suspected top regional leader of the Sinaloa cartel, in February, in coordination with the United States.
The Mexican government also welcomed U.S. Army Green Berets to their country in February as part of a joint training exercise with the Mexican Marine Corps.
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