At her Thursday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum responded to the United States’ designation of six Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations by announcing she was sending a constitutional reform proposal to Congress to bolster the protection of Mexico’s sovereignty.
Among other issues, Sheinbaum also spoke about United States President Donald Trump’s decision to launch an anti-drug campaign.
Sheinbaum: Designation of cartels as terrorists not an ‘opportunity’ for US to ‘invade our sovereignty’
On the day the United States’ designation of six Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations took effect, Sheinbaum declared that Mexico’s sovereignty is not up for negotiation.
The terrorist designations of the Sinaloa Cartel, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and other Mexican criminal organizations “can’t be an opportunity for the United States to invade our sovereignty,” she said.
“They can name cartels as they choose, but with Mexico it’s collaboration and coordination, never subordination, no interference or invasion,” Sheinbaum said.
In that context, the president announced she was submitting a constitutional reform proposal to Congress.
Sheinbaum read out a proposed addition to Article 40 of the Mexican constitution:
“The people of Mexico, under no circumstance, will accept interventions, interference or any other act from abroad that is harmful to the integrity, independence and sovereignty of the nation, such as coups, interference in elections or violation of Mexican territory whether it’s by land, water, sea or air space.”
“Nor will they allow intervention in investigations or any pursuit [of a suspect] without the authorization and express collaboration of the Mexican state within the framework of applicable laws.”
Sheinbaum also read out a proposed addition to Article 19 of the Mexican constitution.
“The most severe possible punishment as well as the precautionary measure of preventive prison will be imposed on any national or foreigner involved in the manufacture, distribution, transfer, transport or illicit admission to national territory of weapons, and on any foreigner who carries out activities on the margin of the law associated with the second and third paragraphs of article 40 of this constitution.”
Therefore, any foreign agents — from the CIA or DEA, for example — who enter Mexico without the authorization of the Mexican government would be subject to arrest, imprisonment before trial and harsh penalties if convicted.
“These are the two modifications to the Constitution that we’re sending [to Congress],” Sheinbaum said.
“What does this mean? We collaborate, we coordinate, we work together [with the United States], but there is no interference, no violation of sovereignty,” she said, adding that “this is what we want to be made clear” in light of the United States government’s designation of six Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
Sheinbaum also made it clear that Mexico, like the United States, is determined to combat drug trafficking, organized crime groups and violence.
She also said that the Mexican government would broaden its lawsuit against U.S. gun manufacturers and distributors in consideration of the designation of six cartels as terrorist groups.
“There will be a broadening of this lawsuit due to the complicity [with terrorists] of those that sell weapons that are brought into our country,” Sheinbaum said.
Sheinbaum responds to Trump’s decision to launch anti-drug campaign
A day after Trump thanked her for giving him the idea to launch an anti-drug campaign, Sheinbaum returned the favor.
“I obviously thank him for the mention,” she said.
“I think that it is something important,” Sheinbaum continued, referring to the U.S. anti-drug campaign.
“We have always said that the trafficking of drugs to the United States has to do with drug use in the United States, that it’s not just an issue for Mexico. … There wouldn’t be distribution of drugs to the United States if there wasn’t drug use in the United States,” she said.
The decision to launch an anti-drug campaign is “recognition from the United States president of what we call attention to the causes,” Sheinbaum said.
“… It’s recognition that they have to attend to the issue of drug use there,” she said.
“And I think that’s very important. … So I think this announcement that President Trump made yesterday is very important,” Sheinbaum said.
Government seeks agreement with gas stations to limit profits
A reporter asked the president whether the government was prepared to establish a price cap for gasoline — possibly 24 pesos per liter — as part of efforts to keep inflation under control.
“This issue with the price of gasoline — what is not regulated, let’s say, is the profits of a private company,” Sheinbaum said.
“The Pemex gas stations are in fact Pemex franchises, they’ve been operated privately for a long time, and Pemex also sells [fuel] to non-Pemex gas stations, and apart from that, there is imported gasoline,” she said.
“Before entering into a scheme of fixing prices, we think that we can reach a voluntary agreement [with gas stations]. We did it [with the private sector] for the basic basket [of essential goods],” Sheinbaum said.
“So first we want a voluntary agreement, in which they themselves, the gas station owners, moderate the amount of pesos they earn for each liter they sell. So that is what we are working on,” she said.
“Ideally what we want is this voluntary agreement. If the voluntary agreement doesn’t happen, then we could think about other ways, but I believe — because of the meetings we’ve already had — that it is possible to reach one,” Sheinbaum said.
“… We still have next week to seal [the deal] and everything is going well, so I expect that we’ll be able to sign it very soon,” she said.
Mexican and US forces to collaborate more closely on cross-border security issues
Sheinbaum said that Defense Minister Ricardo Trevilla Trejo and General Gregory M. Guillot, Commander of the U.S. Northern Command, had a “very good, very respectful conversation.”
The U.S. Northern Command said in a statement on Wednesday that the two men “met recently to discuss cooperation to increase security along the Mexico and U.S. border.”
“The conversation resulted in the formulation of a Joint Statement of Understanding regarding cooperative activities along the border, to include coordinated patrols on their respective sides of the border, increased information sharing, and methods for immediate communications,” the statement said.
“The conversation and agreements emphasize that each country will respect the sovereignty of the other,” it added.
Sheinbaum said that U.S. security forces could share information with Mexican forces about arms trafficking, for example, “or vice versa in the face of other conditions,” such as the northward flows of drugs or migrants.
“Above all, communication and coordination in these cases was spoken about” during the meeting between Trevilla and Guillot, she said.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
The conversation and agreements emphasize that each country will respect the sovereignty of the other,”
Oh, okay.
Pass it! Keep the CIA out!
Pemex is a disaster under government ownership. Should file bankruptcy then sell the remains to private ownership. Government doesn’t know how to run companies.
The Economic Fallout of Cartel Terrorist Designations in Mexico
The recent designation of Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations is a seismic shift that could have profound economic consequences. While the focus has largely been on national security and sovereignty, the real and immediate impact may lie in how this affects Mexico’s economy, business climate, and international investment.
There are numerous precedents for how terrorist classifications reshape financial and corporate landscapes. One of the most striking examples is the case of SNC-Lavalin, a French-Canadian engineering firm that was fined $800 million by a U.S. court for making payments to a terrorist organization to ensure the safety of its employees. Now, with cartel groups falling under this classification, multinational corporations operating in Mexico will have to rethink their risk exposure. If making payments to these groups for security reasons becomes legally equivalent to financing terrorism, many companies may see no viable path forward and opt to exit the country rather than risk fines, legal action, or reputational damage.
This raises critical questions:
How will this impact multinational investment? Many global companies have made long-term commitments to Mexico, drawn by its manufacturing infrastructure, trade agreements, and labor costs. However, this new legal landscape could force businesses to reconsider whether operating in Mexico is worth the potential liability. Some may freeze expansion plans, while others could begin shifting production elsewhere.
What will happen to currency stability and economic outlooks? The peso’s performance has been relatively strong in recent years, bolstered by foreign direct investment and remittances. If businesses begin to pull out or hesitate to invest, the currency could experience volatility, and confidence in the Mexican economy could decline.
How will the loss of legitimate business affect national stability? If foreign companies exit and local businesses struggle under the weight of increased legal risk and security concerns, the economic vacuum may push more people toward informal economies—or worse, into the very criminal organizations the government is trying to combat. This could have devastating long-term effects, further entrenching cartel influence in affected regions.
What policies is the government considering to mitigate these risks? While the official narrative focuses on sovereignty and rejecting external influence, the reality is that internal sovereignty is already under immense strain. With an estimated 40% of Mexico’s territory allegedly under cartel control, the government’s ability to enforce its own laws is already compromised. The conversation needs to shift from resisting foreign intervention to reclaiming control over its own land and economy.
At its core, sovereignty means supreme authority, territorial integrity, and independence from external control. But what happens when a government lacks the ability to enforce its own laws over nearly half its territory? Can sovereignty truly exist in such a scenario?
The immediate crisis Mexico faces is not just about external pressure from the U.S. or international investors—it is about whether the state can reassert itself within its own borders. Without a clear economic strategy to address the fallout of these new designations, the risks of capital flight, economic contraction, and further instability grow exponentially.
The question is: Will Mexico rise to the challenge and implement policies that reassure businesses and reinforce its economy? Or will the country face a period of prolonged uncertainty and economic retreat? The decisions made in the coming months will shape Mexico’s trajectory for years to come.
I look forward to reading more in the upcoming articles.
This effort by the president to try and block US help to destroy the cartels, rather than negotiate a process acceptable to both parties, is proof beyond a doubt that Mexico has already lost its sovereignty to the cartels.