US ‘invasion’ of Mexico to take out cartels rejected by Sheinbaum
Mexico has said it will not accept an “invasion” by US forces amid talks by Donald Trump’s transition team to deploy American troops to fight drug cartels.
Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president, said: “Of course we do not agree with an invasion or the presence of this type in our country. During the government of president López Obrador there was greater control by US agencies in Mexico, and that will be maintained.”
It comes amid mounting reports that Washington could dispatch Special Forces soldiers to eliminate Mexican drug cartels.
Tom Homan, the man tapped by Mr Trump to lead his border closures, recently told Fox News the president-elect “will use [the] full might of the United States Special Operations to take ‘em out”.
An anonymous source told Rolling Stone last week that transition officials had discussed “how much to invade” Mexico.
Air strikes
Plans presented to Mr Trump are reported to have included air strikes on cartel infrastructure, assassinating cartel leaders and training Mexican forces.
The scheme would most likely include covert operations and patrols just over the border in order to stem the flow of drugs across the frontier.
Asked about the comments, Ms Sheinbaum dismissed the strategy as “entirely a movie”.
“What I base myself on is the conversation – the two conversations – that I had with President Trump, and then, at the moment, the communication we will have with his work team and when he takes office,” she added.
The Mexican leader insisted she would defend her country’s sovereignty, saying: “Mexico is a free, independent, sovereign country – and that is above everything else.”
It is not known whether Mr Trump will press ahead with a “soft invasion” of Mexico to tackle the drug gangs.
Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth, his picks for state and defence secretaries, have both voiced support for hardline tactics, including the use of military force.
Mr Hegseth said lethal force would be in the US national interest because cartels are “terrorist-like organizations poisoning our population”.
“If it takes military action, that’s what it may take, eventually,” he said. “Obviously, you’re gonna have to be smart about it. Obviously, the precision strikes. But if you put the fear in the minds of the drug lords, at least as a start, [and] they can’t operate in the open with impunity, [it] changes the way they operate. You combine that with actual border security ... now you’re cooking with gas and you’ve got a chance.”
Mr Rubio has suggested military deployments would be acceptable if “there is cooperation” with the Mexican government.
Experts have warned that deploying US troops inside Mexico would be incredibly challenging.
They say the cartels are now near-peer adversaries armed with modern, heavy weaponry and armoured vehicles.
The cartels could also adopt guerrilla tactics similar to the ones that proved previously effective against US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.