President Andrés Manuel López Obrador claimed on Thursday that the United States government is partly to blame for the wave of cartel violence that has claimed more than 40 lives in Sinaloa in the past two weeks.
Asked at his morning press conference whether the U.S. was in any way “jointly responsible” for the violence stemming from fighting between the “Los Mayos” and “Los Chapitos” factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, López Obrador gave an unequivocal response.
“Yes, of course, yes,” he said.
López Obrador asserted that the United States shares blame for the eruption of violence in and around Culiacán because it carried out the “operation” that resulted in the arrest of alleged Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García in the U.S. on July 25.
By “operation” he apparently meant a negotiation with another alleged Sinaloa Cartel leader, Joaquín Guzmán López, that he believes resulted in the delivery of Zambada to U.S. law enforcement authorities at an airport near El Paso, Texas.
While Los Mayos and Los Chapitos have been fighting each other for years, the main cause of their current conflict is the alleged kidnapping of El Mayo.
The U.S. government has denied any involvement in the capture of Zambada, who alleges he was abducted and forced onto a U.S.-bound plane by Guzmán López, one of Los Chapitos, as the sons of convicted drug trafficker Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera are known.
Nevertheless, López Obrador declared that the United States government needs to “internalize” that it “can’t act like that, without taking the government of Mexico into account.”
“In other words, there can’t be a relationship of cooperation when unilateral measures are taken. That can’t be accepted,” he said.
The president charged that there was an agreement between Guzmán López and U.S. authorities, and “due to that agreement … the confrontation that is occurring was caused.”
He said that Mexican authorities still didn’t know the details of the alleged agreement, despite their calls for transparency from their U.S. counterparts.
Jeffrey Lichtman, Guzmán López’s lawyer, said in late July that his client didn’t have any deal with U.S. authorities.
However, López Obrador said that “according to the Federal Attorney General’s Office [FGR], the [U.S.] Department of Justice conducted talks with one of the crime groups in Sinaloa and they had agreements.”
“They even released or gave a different status to one of the prisoners in the United States at the same time that another person was taken [to the U.S.],” he said.
That remark was apparently a reference to reports that Ovidio Guzmán López, another of Los Chapitos, has entered the United States Federal Witness Protection Program.
Publicly available records of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons showed that Ovidio was released from prison on July 23 — two days before the arrest of his brother and Zambada — but United States Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar has said on repeated occasions that Ovidio remains in U.S. custody.
On Thursday, López Obrador insinuated that Ovidio — who was captured in Culiacán in early 2023 and extradited to the United States a year ago — is receiving preferential treatment from the U.S. authorities because his brother facilitated the arrest of Zambada for them.
“That requires an explanation because we’re now facing a situation of instability, of confrontation in Sinaloa,” he said.
“It’s due to them taking that decision,” López Obrador said.
“We don’t agree … because we have the problem here. Of course we’re facing up to it, we’re solving it, but in Sinaloa there wasn’t the violence there is now,” he said.
“Nor is it … [as bad as] they think, it’s [not] completely out of control, no,” López Obrador said.
“… But we’ve had to take special measures and move members of the armed forces [to Sinaloa]. And we’ve also lost soldiers who have been murdered because of this special, extraordinary situation.”
AMLO: US ‘operation’ to capture Zambada was ‘completely illegal’
Later in his press conference, López Obrador was asked whether the United States was “right” to carry out an operation (or negotiation) to arrest Zambada.
“It can’t be right because they murdered people. It was completely illegal,” he said, apparently referencing El Mayo’s claim that former Culiacán mayor Héctor Cuen was killed at the same place he was abducted.
“And agents of the [U.S.] Department of Justice were waiting for el señor Mayo,” López Obrador said, seeking to provide further evidence of a prior agreement with Joaquín Guzmán López.
He also said that it was “completely irregular” that a person was “kidnapped via an agreement and taken to the United States.”
The FGR has indicated that it intends to lay treason charges against Joaquín Guzmán López for allegedly kidnapping Zambada and turning him in to U.S. authorities.
During lengthy remarks about the case, López Obrador also questioned whether the United States “really” negotiated the arrest of Zambada out of its desire to stem drug trafficking, especially the entry of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl to the United States.
“Let’s see if it was that or if it was a decision that was taken, as always, to [just] show that they’re attending to the fentanyl use problem — just for propaganda,” he said.
The relationship with the US ‘has to be good’
Despite his strong words against the U.S. government over its alleged collaboration with Joaquín Guzmán López, and his decision to pause relations with the U.S. Embassy in Mexico after Ambassador Salazar made critical remarks about the Mexican government’s judicial reform, López Obrador stressed that he is in favor of maintaining a good relationship with Mexico’s northern neighbor.
“The relationship has to be good for geopolitical reasons, because of the border — 3,180 kilometers long,” he said.
“Forty million Mexicans live and work honorably in the United States. … So we have to maintain a relationship of respect and good neighborliness with the United States,” López Obrador said.
“The only thing they have to understand is that we’re an independent country.”
Well said papa AMLO!
I agree!
The US arrested at top Mexican Drug Lond US are to blame….aburd AMLO would never said these statements at the beginning of his administration 6 years if so he would have never been elected Mexico should be embarrassed by his behavior it confirms his Coruption by Cartels where’s the 💲💲💲
I’m getting tired of his anti-US schtick. The president who ignored Mx’s biggest problem for 6 years- cartel violence.
It’s not a simple situation. The USA has lots of culpability: (a) Anti-libertarian, moral-extremist, and corrupt fostering of the lucrative black market for illegal drugs; (b) Enabling addicts to live like feral animals everywhere; (c) and pimping the problem (as Trump does the border) for political gain and gamesmanship; and, (d) imperialistically subjecting USM aliens to prosecution, extradition, and punishment in the USA even when only supplying USA demand (the USA, however, does not demand pernicious consumer fraud by cartels in supplying fentanyl under false pretenses). The UMS has lots of culpability: (a) Devolving large swaths of territory to cartel governance; (b) sociopathic lying about the role of cartels in manufacturing and trafficking in fentanyl and in controlling the government.
I’ve long worked within an adversarial system and we can see it here at work very well: The USA points out the flaws of the USM and the USM points out the flaws of the USA.
Ya left out corruprion
Only 12 more days to have to listen to such “I am always right” rhetoric to the point that arresting one of the worst drug lords for over 40 years is “wrong”. And everything the U.S. does is wrong as well. AMLO is a desperately short man with a giant ego complex trying mightedly to be 1/2 inch taller. What a crock. Good bye and good riddenance.
Great statement!
‘Hugs not bullets” vs. ‘we’ll put a boot in your azz, its the American way’.
Dear Mr. AMLO, this mass murderer thought he was on his way to meet the Morena Governor of Sinaloa. All in a days work for a cartel leader. Instead he met his Uncle Sam! Brilliant!
Absolutely terrific!
What if Mexico did the same thing to the U.S.? I bet a lot of self-righteous folks would be up at arms and pissed that someone violated our sovereighty. What a bunch of hypocrites we are. All right for us to do, but not for others. We’re lucky Mexico doesn’t deport our asses for saying such innane remarks.
Are you kidding? Why would I be angry if Mexico did my governments dirty work and got the terrorists off the streets?
There was no agreement. A typical case of “Plausible deniability”. AMLO takes the high ground. No cheap successes, arresting a 75 year old in exchange of last year’s cheap success. Better a long term strategy (hugs): social programs to reduce poverty so less people are tempted to get into the drugs business or to start using drugs.
As I stated previously. If it’s the US you blame, let them come in and fix it!!! If you are going to tolerate murder of innocent civilians, what is the worry of some collateral damage. I came to Mexico because I disagree with the policies of the US. However, if your serious about taking care of the problem, there’s no better Ally than the blood thirsty US military complex. From a technical perspective, the US could wipe out many of the Narcos with drones. The US government would pay billions of dollars to help rebuild. There’s no worry of another Vietnam. Times and technology have changed warfare. Most US Metropolitan police stations are more militarized and better equipped than the Mexican troops. Drugs will come in through other sources. America is the land of consumption and Americans always find a way to buy whatever they desire. Until the US gets serious about addiction and mental health there will always be demand for narcotics. Hugs not bullets is a joke along the lines of the war on drugs. Within 6 months the US would take out the majority of the cartel members. Yes there would be casualties, but there are already casualties. Hell, if Trump wins in November, his rhetoric already includes war with Mexico and killing Narcos and innocent migrants trying to get to the US. Are you going to embrace that crazy asshat with hugs too? Amlo gets to walk away in a couple weeks leaving this clusterf#ck to a new administration. How long will the new administration continue to hug the cartels. Letting them continue unchecked is only strengthening the cartels. Someone has to get serious about this problem. It’s telling that the president will blame the US before condemning the cartels. I’m just going to sit back and continue to listen to Nero fiddling away. 🥃cheers!
Interesting. The article states that AMLO says he doesn’t have any details about an alleged agreement, and then goes on and on saying how the U.S. Government was in collusion with another drug cartel to apprehend the drug lord. So that makes the U.S. partially responsible for the cartel wars and deaths in Sinaloa. The United States is responsible, too, for these deaths and distruction.
But he doesn’t have any details to explain his accusations.
I guess we should stop offering rewards for the capture of these cartel leaders as it might cause some of them to be arrested and then the US would be blamed for interfering with a sovereign country. what really flusters me is that el Mayo was wanted for over 40 years in Mexico and now that he is finally arrested the Mexican government files an arrest warrant for el chapito. who is protecting whom?
👍👍👍👍
To take a slightly different tack : the DSM5 has what is termed Cluster B personality disorders ; the milder symptoms include selective hearing, confirmation bias, pathological lying and more seriously impaired reality testing and delusions. Unfortunately the current incumbent isn’t well (soon to go) and has used a populist narrative (Trump ?) to fool the Mexican electorate leaving a more violent and economically weaker country
The U.S. involvement in Mexico, Polks War, multiple invasions, pillaging it’s mineral reserves, spraying of chemicals, has a long and tainted history. Most people like those commenting on this article are the product of public schools in America. That education devalues the Mexican perspective on U.S. relations and creates a false impression on what a good neighbor American is. “So far from God, and so close to the United States” offers a different view of the realtionship. It’s interesting how Americans like to thump thier chest’s and spout sudo knowledge instead of looking into the facts. No surprise as that has long been the American way.
Mr. President, you ought to be very “thankful” for the US Government DEA and the FBI to “capture” EL MAYO who has created lots of violence throughout all of Mexico. Yoe must be in favor of the Cartels for “protecting them”. All the people of Mexico knows that the Cartel is in control of the country, so don’t “blow your own horn” bragging about the security and protection the people have, because it’s not true. Now that you are no longer the President, go home and hide and let the new President perform the duties of the president. Don’t try to control her because the Mexican people, what to see new “changes” in their life’s, not your changes.
Stay out of “politics”, nobody wants or needs your “advice” which is controlled by the Cartels.
👍👍👍👌
In AMLO’s universe, it’s wrong to arrest criminals who murder and extort like El Mayo. So the US had to do it.
Sooooo, the US operation to capture El Mayo was “illegal”? Well, we’re dealing with career lawbreakers here. Sometimes you have to fight fire with fire. Just sayin’ . . . .