On Friday, President of the United States Donald Trump informed Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in a letter that he would impose a 30% tariff on Mexican imports beginning Aug. 1.
“Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT, what Mexico has done, is not enough,” the letter states. “Mexico still has not stopped the Cartels who are trying to turn all of North America into a Narco-Trafficking Playground.” Trump also announced a 30% tariff on imports from the European Union, due to “persistent, trade deficits, engendered by your tariff, and non-tariff, policies and trade barriers,” the president said in a separate letter.
On Monday, Sheinbaum announced that the concerns cited in the letter would be addressed in ongoing bilateral talks, particularly the significant U.S. trade deficit with Mexico. She expressed confidence that Mexico would be able to negotiate a deal to reduce, if not eliminate, the tariff.
The new tariffs were a blow to Sheinbaum’s cabinet, which has made numerous trips to Washington to ensure Trump’s advisors that Mexico is making progress on the issues identified as priorities by the U.S. president.
In recent weeks, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised Mexico for being “very responsive” to Washington’s demands and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called Mexico’s proposals “positive.”
Mexico was informed that the letter was coming during high-level talks with U.S. State Department officials on Friday. The Mexican delegation expressed disagreement with the decision and considered it “unfair treatment,” according to a joint statement of the Economy Ministry and the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Sheinbaum, who has avoided directly criticizing Trump, voiced confidence that the U.S. and Mexico will be able to discuss the matter diplomatically.
“I’ve always said that in these cases, you need a cool head to face any problem,” Sheinbaum said on Saturday.
The tariff, if it goes into effect, could cause massive upheaval between the United States and its biggest trade partner.
The 30% rate would effectively replace the 25% tariffs currently levied on Mexican goods that do not comply with the existing U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA).
The letter did not address whether USMCA-compliant goods would still be exempt from the new tariffs after Aug. 1.
Columnist for the newspaper El Financiero Enrique Quintana estimated that approximately US $150 billion worth of Mexican goods would be subject to the new 30% import tax.
Comunicado relevante sobre aranceles de Estados Unidos : pic.twitter.com/V5HtSsNzyg
— Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) July 12, 2025
In the joint statement, Mexico said “the first major task of the permanent binational committee will be to conduct the work so that, before [the tariffs take effect], we have an alternative that will protect businesses and jobs on both sides of the border.”
The bilateral talks involve Ebrard’s Economy Ministry along with the foreign relations, finance, security and energy ministries.
On its side of the table, the U.S. State Department is joined by the Commerce and Energy departments, Homeland Security and the U.S. Trade Representative.
Sheinbaum said Mexico’s negotiators will emphasize the progress her administration has made in the fight against organized crime, while also seeking to gain greater cooperation from U.S. counterparts.
“We have insisted that controlling the flow of weapons from the United States to Mexico, and arresting individuals involved in drug trafficking in the United States [requires] collaboration,” she said on Monday. “Yes, there is coordination, but part of [the responsibility] falls on us to prevent drugs from passing from here to there, but part of it also falls on them.”
Sheinbaum said her administration will continue working to reach a satisfactory agreement. “The most important thing for us is to ensure that employment is not affected and that cooperation between our countries is maintained,” she said.
As has been the case since Trump imposed the first of a string of tariffs on Mexico, Sheinbaum has declined to discuss retaliatory tariffs. In his letter, Trump included a threat to raise the tariffs should Mexico opt to retaliate.
With reports from The Associated Press, El Economista, El Financiero, Reuters and The Guardian
