Mexico Reports Positive Conversation With Trump on Security, Drug Trafficking

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she remains opposed to U.S. military deployments or strikes on cartel targets inside her country.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum presents a new security strategy against violence for Michoacan state, at the National Palace, in Mexico City on Nov. 9, 2025. Claudia Rosel/AP Photo

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Jan. 12 that she had a productive dialogue with U.S. President Donald Trump on efforts to combat drug trafficking and other issues of mutual concern.

“We discussed various topics, including security, with respect for our sovereignty, reducing drug trafficking, trade, and investment. Collaboration and cooperation within a framework of mutual respect always yield results,” Sheinbaum wrote on X on Jan. 12.

The conversation between the two heads of state comes as Trump has raised pressure on Mexico and other Latin American states to increase cooperation with the United States, particularly in efforts to curb drug trafficking.

After U.S. forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in a pre-dawn raid on Jan. 3, Trump said Mexico needs to “get its act together” when dealing with drug cartels and reiterated offers to send U.S. forces to assist in such efforts.

On Jan. 8, Trump raised the stakes further, suggesting that U.S. military strikes could focus on land-based cartel targets in Mexico in the future.

Thus far, Sheinbaum has been opposed to U.S. military action in Mexico.

Speaking with reporters at a Jan. 12 press conference, Sheinbaum said she and Trump again discussed a U.S. force deployment to Mexico and said Trump was understanding as she reiterated her opposition to such a move.

“He didn’t insist either; rather, it was in the tone of, ‘If you want us to help you more with our forces in Mexico.’ I told him, ‘Well, no, I’ve already told you several times that that’s not on the table,’ but we continue to collaborate within the framework of our sovereignties,” Sheinbaum said.

The Epoch Times reached out to the White House for comment on the call between Trump and Sheinbaum but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a separate call with Mexican Foreign Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente on Jan. 11.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the two discussed “the need for stronger cooperation to dismantle Mexico’s violent narcoterrorist networks and stop the trafficking of fentanyl and weapons.”

“Secretary Rubio reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to stopping narcoterrorism and stressed the need for tangible results to protect our homeland and hemisphere,” he said.

Colombia and Cuba also face increased pressure from a Trump administration emboldened by the Maduro raid.

Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro have traded barbs in recent weeks. The U.S. president has faulted his Colombian counterpart for not cooperating closely enough on efforts to stamp out Colombia’s cocaine production.

Last week, Trump reported a productive phone conversation with Petro and indicated plans to host him at the White House in the near future.

In a post on Truth Social on Jan. 11, Trump said he had cut Cuba off from Venezuela’s oil supply.

The United States has limited its engagement with the Cuban leadership for decades, since the Caribbean island nation came under communist control following Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution.

In a statement following Trump’s latest comments, Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said U.S.–Cuba relations “must be based on International Law rather than on hostility, threats, and economic coercion.”