Mexico sends 10,000 troops to border as part of deal with Trump to pause tariffs
A Mexico's Army officer patrols the Mexican side of the US-Mexico border in Playas de Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on February 3, 2025. (AFP Photo)
Military personnel began arriving in border cities Tuesday as Mexico launched a major security operation, fulfilling a commitment to U.S. President Donald Trump that helped avert threatened tariffs on Mexican exports to the United States.
The deployment, announced by President Claudia Sheinbaum following eleventh-hour negotiations with Trump, targets illegal migration and fentanyl trafficking along the 2,000-mile shared border.
“The deployment has already started,” Sheinbaum told reporters, as hundreds of National Guard members boarded military aircraft in Merida, heading toward strategic border points including Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez.
In Ciudad Juarez, which borders Texas, National Guard coordinator Jose Luis Santos outlined a comprehensive security strategy. “There will be patrols along the entire U.S.-Mexico border,” Santos said, describing a combination of foot and vehicle patrols along border-adjacent roads.
Mexican security forces investigate underground smuggling network
The operation comes amid heightened concerns about underground smuggling routes. On Tuesday, Mexican and U.S. authorities conducted joint searches in Ciudad Juarez, investigating potential tunnels.
While they discovered a storm drain, it did not extend into U.S. territory. This follows last month’s discovery of a sophisticated 300-meter tunnel connecting Ciudad Juarez to El Paso, Texas, concealed within the cities’ storm sewerage system.
The security agreement emerged from a broader trade dispute. Trump had announced 25 percent tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, alongside additional duties on Chinese goods. The border security deal postponed these tariffs for 30 days, alleviating immediate concerns about a potential trade war that had rattled global markets.
Addressing domestic security implications, Sheinbaum emphasized that the troops were drawn from regions with lower security needs, maintaining that the redeployment “does not leave the rest of the country without security.”
This consideration carries particular weight given Mexico’s ongoing struggle with drug-related violence, which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives since 2006, when the military was first deployed against trafficking organizations.
