Tipsheet

Are American Forces Headed Into Mexico?

The White House is increasing pressure on the Mexican government to allow U.S. forces to combat drug cartels in the region.

This comes amid the Trump administration’s efforts to stop the flow of deadly and illegal narcotics into the United States. President Donald Trump is attempting to persuade Mexico’s government to allow U.S. forces to conduct joint operations to target fentanyl production facilities on Mexican soil.

From The New York Times:

The United States is intensifying pressure on Mexico to allow U.S. military forces to conduct joint operations to dismantle fentanyl labs inside the country, according to American officials.

The push comes as President Trump presses on the Mexican government to grant the United States a larger role in the battle against drug cartels that produce fentanyl and smuggle it into the United States.

The proposal was first raised early last year and then largely dropped, officials said. But the request was renewed after U.S. forces captured President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela on Jan. 3 and has involved the highest levels of government, including the White House, according to multiple officials.

U.S. officials want American forces — either Special Operation troops or C.I.A. officers — to accompany Mexican soldiers on raids on suspected fentanyl labs, according to American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic issues and military planning. Such joint operations would be a significant expansion of the United States’ role in Mexico, and one that the Mexican government has so far adamantly opposed.

The country’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has repeatedly said that the two nations would work together to fight the cartels but that her government rejected the U.S.’s proposal of sending American troops across the border.

During a recent interview on Fox News, President Trump said, “We are going to start now hitting land with regard to the cartels” and that “the cartels are running Mexico.”

“It’s very sad to watch and see what’s happened to that country,” Trump continued. “But the cartels are running, and they’re killing 250, 300,000 people in our country every single year.”

The White House’s efforts to convince Mexico to allow U.S. military intervention began shortly after Trump took office. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has resisted the idea.

"We continue to work together while respecting our sovereignty... Our aim is cooperation without subordination," Sheinbaum said during a press conference.