Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Monday condemned what she described as U.S. intervention in Venezuela and rejected the idea of American troops entering Mexico, reaffirming her government’s commitment to national sovereignty.
“We categorically reject intervention in the internal affairs of other countries,” Sheinbaum said at a press conference in Mexico City, according to an official transcript of the speech released by her office.
“The history of Latin America is clear and forceful, the intervention has never brought democracy, it has never generated well-being or lasting stability. Only people can build their own future, decide their path, exercise sovereignty over their natural resources and freely define their form of government,” she said.
The U.S. military on Saturday carried out an operation in Caracas, extracting former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their compound.
Maduro and Flores were boarded onto the USS Iwo Jima and flown to New York to face federal charges, with their arraignment taking place on Monday in Manhattan.
Maduro is charged with four counts: narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine-guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine-guns and destructive devices.
His wife is charged with three counts: cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine-guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine-guns and destructive devices.
Sheinbaum said that following the capture of Venezuela’s leader and his wife, and amid warnings from President Donald Trump that Mexico must “get their act together,” Mexican sovereignty and self-determination remain non-negotiable.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he thinks Sheinbaum is a “terrific person,” but the cartels are “running Mexico.”
“We’re going to have to do something. We’d love Mexico to do it, they’re capable of doing it, but unfortunately the cartels are very strong in Mexico,” Trump said.
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Sheinbaum said her country is cooperating with the United States to help fight against drug trafficking, organized crime and the flow of fentanyl.
“I don’t believe in an invasion. I don’t even think it’s something they’re taking very seriously,” Sheinbaum told reporters in Spanish when asked about a potential U.S. intervention, according to Reuters’ translation of her remarks.
She said Trump has repeatedly insisted during their phone conversations that the U.S. Army be allowed to enter Mexico.
“We have said no very firmly — first because we defend our sovereignty, and second because it is not necessary,” Sheinbaum told reporters.
