International
Sheinbaum proposes to leave the “dialogue” with Trump through the media
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum asked on Monday to leave the “dialogue” through the media with the president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, who over the weekend suggested that his country annex Mexico, to which she accused of receiving American “subsidies”.
“I think we’re going to leave this dialogue through the media for a while. Obviously, Mexico is a free, sovereign, independent country, because we all know that and so we always have to defend it,” the president said during her morning press conference.
With this “dialogue” with Trump, Sheinbaum referred to the series of statements that the next US president has made in recent days regarding Mexico, the last ones during an interview published on Sunday by the NBC network where he assured that his country subsidizes Mexicans and Canada, and suggested annexing them as state 51 and 52.
Border trade policy
Trump said that the United States is subsidizing Mexico and Canada with the current trade policy, and assured that the increase in tariffs “appropriately” will improve the economy, but he cannot guarantee that it will not have an impact on American families.
“We are subsidizing Mexico and Canada and many other countries around the world. All I want is to have a level and fair ground, quickly,” he said in the interview, the first with a television since the November 5 elections, in which he imposed on the Democrat and Vice President Kamala Harris.
In this regard, Sheinbaum said that the subsidy refers to the increase in exports made from Mexico to the United States and that are now more than imports.
“But yesterday I raised, at the event we had in Nuevo Laredo, that the only way to compete with other regions is to maintain and strengthen the trade treaty,” he emphasized.
He also said that both countries should not be seen as competition but as “complement”.
“President Trump was the one who signed the T-MEC and the United States has had a lot of benefits from the treaty, so I’m going to talk, there will be time to be able to talk about these benefits. So, I’ll leave it there,” he concluded.
Budget for mass deportations
Sheinbaum also assured that “not much more budget is required” to face the mass deportations and other restrictive immigration policies that Trump promises and that he plans to bring his migration plan into dialogue.
The Mexican ruler argued that the National Institute of Migration (INM) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) have enough resources to deal with deportations and the migratory flow when Trump takes office on January 20.
“Not much more budget is required, we are working on strengthening the Institute, it is not so much the budget as some internal reorganization, because the Institute fulfills several functions and everything is concentrated in the same place since the Institute was formed, so we are working on it,” he said.
The country is concerned about Trump’s promises of mass deportations from the United States, where Mexicans are about half of the 11 million undocumented people and their remittances represent almost 4% of Mexico’s gross domestic product (GDP), which this year would receive an estimated record of 65 billion dollars.
Concern about Trump’s immigration plan continues
The president will head the National Security Council this Tuesday in the port of Acapulco with all the governors of the country, with whom she hopes to put together an immigration plan in the face of mass deportations and other Trump policies.
Although the daily detention of migrants on the border of the United States with Mexico has fallen by 75% since December 2023, according to the Mexican Government, irregular migration through Mexico rose by 193% year-on-year in the first half of the year to exceed 712,000 people, according to the Migration Policy Unit.
In addition, Sheinbaum valued the appointment of Christopher Landau, former ambassador to Mexico (2019-2021), as “number two” of the US State Department, as announced on Sunday by President-elect Trump.
“Yesterday the (former) ambassador Landau, who knows Mexico very well, was appointed by President Trump as, let’s say, the simile would be undersecretary of the State Department, which is good,” the president said during her morning press conference.
The Mexican ruler acknowledged that Landau as ambassador to Mexico during Trump’s first presidency did “a good job,” and assured that she “knows the country very well,” which could be positive on issues such as migration.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
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