Sheinbaum Rules Out US Military Action in Mexico After Call With Trump: "It's Not On The Table."

“Sol Prendido” for Borderland Beat 

The US president insisted on helping in the fight against insecurity, but the president reiterated that it’s not necessary.

President Claudia Sheinbaum ruled out any military action in Mexico by the United States government to attack organised crime, following her call with Donald Trump, but will continue to collaborate to prevent drug and arms trafficking.

At the morning press conference, which was delayed from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. due to the telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump, the Mexican leader explained that she sought the call because of statements made by her counterpart.

“What prompted the call? He had stated three times that he would be interested in greater participation in security in Mexico, so I believe that under these circumstances it's always better to seek dialogue instead of only through the media or public communication; it's better to talk on the phone.  Furthermore, there is a history of joint work that is already being done, so that's why we requested the call.

He was generally receptive; he insists on the participation of U.S. forces, but we always say that it's not necessary and that we are very clear in defending our territorial integrity, and that there is already collaboration that is working, so it's not needed.”

“Was military action ruled out with this call, in your opinion?” she was asked.

“Yes, yes… Let's say it was made very clear in the conversation that there is collaboration, coordination, and that we continue to work together within that framework. They can always declare something else at some point, and we will seek a new call if that's the case,” she commented, referring to the statement about the contact that Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente had with Marco Rubio.

Sheinbaum Pardo reiterated her position on the United States' argument for labeling drug traffickers as terrorists.

“We do not agree; our Constitution and our laws define terrorism in a different way. Organized crime cannot be classified as terrorism. Terrorism is directly related to actions against the government and other schemes... nor do we agree with the United States calling it terrorism and intervening in our country. We made this so clear that we amended the Constitution or added a paragraph to the Constitution stating that the Mexican people are against any interventionism.”

Sheinbaum Pardo acknowledged that Trump addressed the issue of Venezuela during this conversation, which, unlike other occasions, was very brief.

“I told him very clearly that we have a Constitution with very clear constitutional principles, and that's where the conversation ended,” she commented.

She added that they agreed that the security committee would continue working together, and that there would be a new meeting on January 22 in the United States.

Source: Milenio