Mexico City, Mexico — Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said it is unacceptable and against the law regarding a U.S. Republican proposal to deploy the U.S. Army in Mexico to declare war on the Mexican cartels.
“The intention of Lindsey Graham (Republican Senator for South Carolina) and John Kennedy (Republican Senator for Louisiana) to promote the use of U.S. military forces on national territory is unacceptable and contrary to law,” wrote the head of the Secretary of Foreign Relations (SRE) on Twitter.
He also supported President Andrés Manuel López Obrador who said the statement was “irresponsible” and an “offense to the people of Mexico.” Ebrard added that it is an electoral strategy and maintained that it is impracticable.
“Mexico would never allow something like this. The consequences would be catastrophic for binational anti-drug cooperation,” Ebard said.
“They know that the fentanyl pandemic does not originate in Mexico but in the U.S. They know that fentanyl is being worked on like never before. They will not prosper,” he added.
On Wednesday, two bills were presented in the United States that advocate considering Mexican cartels as terrorist groups and authorizing the use of the Army to combat them.
The controversy has grown by the kidnapping of four Americans March 3 in the state of Tamaulipas. However, the White House decreased tensions between the two countries saying that the United States has all the legal power to fight drug trafficking without the need to declare the Mexican cartels terrorist groups.
“Declaring these cartels foreign terrorist organizations would not give us any additional jurisdiction that we don’t already have at this time,” Karine Jean-Pierre, spokeswoman for President Joe Biden said in a press briefing.
López Obrador also said that “Mexico is respected. We are not a protectorate or colony of the United States (…) we do not receive orders from anyone. The people of Mexico rule here.
“It is not the Government of President Biden, it is the Republicans. (…) It is an arrogant, treacherous, foolish attitude, of course, interventionist,” he said adding that the expressions of congressmen and senators of the Republican Party do not come from the United States Government, headed by President Joseph Biden, so cooperation will continue with the purpose of resolving security issues.
