Mexican president vows to defend citizens amid US deportation plans
Mexico's new President Claudia Sheinbaum delivers a speech during her inauguration ceremony at the Congress of the Union in Mexico City on October 1, 2024.(AFP Photo)
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum pledged Sunday to protect her country’s citizens living in the United States as former President Donald Trump prepared to return to the White House with plans to enact widespread deportations of undocumented migrants.
“In this new period that arrives tomorrow with President Trump: First, we are going to defend Mexicans there,” Sheinbaum said at a public event in Puebla, a state in central Mexico.
While Sheinbaum refrained from directly referencing Trump’s plans, her remarks underscored the gravity of the situation for millions of Mexican nationals who could face deportation. Trump, during his previous term in office, took a hardline stance on immigration and frequently criticized Mexico for its handling of border security.
Sheinbaum announced that her government has mobilized resources to support Mexicans living abroad, including hiring legal teams to assist immigrants through Mexico’s approximately 50 consulates across the United States.
Mexico ready to welcome citizens forced to leave US
“And if they decide to return to Mexico or come to Mexico, they are welcome here, with open arms,” Sheinbaum affirmed, signaling readiness to accommodate those who may be forced to leave the U.S.
The president also invoked the relationship between Trump and her predecessor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who led Mexico from 2018 to 2024. Despite ideological differences, Lopez Obrador and Trump maintained a working relationship during the Republican’s first term.
“That’s why I think we’ll reach a good understanding,” Sheinbaum said, expressing cautious optimism. She tempered her remarks with a sharp assertion of Mexico’s sovereignty: “But, in any case, let it be well understood, let it be heard far away: Mexico is nobody’s colony, nobody’s protectorate.”
Trump’s return to office has reignited tensions between the two nations. In recent weeks, he has renewed calls for stringent immigration enforcement and threatened to impose tariffs on Mexican imports unless the flow of migrants and drugs across the southern border is curtailed.
