Mexico's president rejects Trump offer of U.S. troops to fight cartels

Mexico's president rejects Trump offer of U.S. troops to fight cartels
by Adam Schrader
Washington DC (UPI) May 4, 2025

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that she had rejected an offer from U.S. President Donald Trump to send American troops to help fight drug cartels.

Sheinbaum, speaking on Saturday from the opening of the new Benito Juárez García University for Well-being in the Texcoco Lake Ecological Park, addressed a Friday report from the Wall Street Journal that said Trump had offered up troops during a lengthy phone call earlier this year.

"I want to say it's true; that, in some of the calls, but not in the way they mention it, he said: 'How can we help you fight drug trafficking? I propose that the United States military come in to help'," Sheinbaum said in her speech as published by her office.

"And you know what I told him? 'No, President Trump, territory is inviolable, sovereignty is inviolable, sovereignty is not for sale; sovereignty is loved and defended.'"

The Mexican presidency said in its news release that Sheinbaum told Trump that information could be shared, and the two countries could collaborate, but only with the authority each nation has within their own borders.

"And I told him one more thing. If you want to help us, President Trump, help us stop weapons from entering Mexico from the United States'," Sheinbaum recounted.

Anna Kelly, the deputy press secretary at the White House, provided a written statement to Fox News on Saturday that highlighted the collaboration between the two countries on combating drug trafficking.

"President Trump has worked with President Sheinbaum to advance border security collaboration with Mexico to the highest levels ever," Kelly wrote.

"This robust cooperation and information sharing is delivering tangible results, including the removal of numerous cartel leaders to the U.S. to face justice and creating the most secure border in history."

Since returning to office, Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a key tenet of his agenda including designating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations -- a move that would give U.S. prosecutors broader authority and potentially open the door to military action. Trump first floated the designation during his initial presidency.

Meanwhile, the CIA is deploying MQ-9 Reaper drones over Mexico to search for fentanyl labs run by drug cartels.

Despite resistance from some lawmakers and concerns from foreign policy experts about sovereignty and unintended consequences, the Trump administration has insisted such tactics -- and his tariffs -- are necessary to curb the flow of fentanyl and stem migration at the southern border.