She will only go so far. President Claudia Sheinbaum publicly confirmed earlier in the week that she rejected an offer from former President Donald Trump to deploy U.S. military forces on Mexican soil to combat drug cartels—an offer she called unacceptable and incompatible with Mexico’s sovereignty.
The exchange, first detailed in The Wall Street Journal, took place during a recent phone call in which Trump asked, “How can we help you fight drug trafficking?” Sheinbaum’s reply was blunt: “No, President Trump, our territory is inalienable. Our sovereignty is inalienable.” She added that while cooperation is possible, it must be based on mutual respect and territorial boundaries: “We can collaborate. We can work together—but with you in your territory and us in ours.”
The remarks reaffirm Sheinbaum’s longstanding stance that Mexico alone is responsible for securing its own territory, even as cartel-related violence escalates and drug trafficking continues to poison both sides of the border. Intelligence-sharing and joint enforcement actions remain on the table, but Sheinbaum has drawn a clear line: there will be no foreign troops on Mexican ground.
In Washington, reported Fox News, the White House issued a diplomatic statement emphasizing continued collaboration. Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly praised the bilateral relationship, pointing to recent joint operations and high-profile cartel extraditions as signs of progress. Behind the scenes, however, momentum is building among conservative policymakers for a more aggressive approach. With Trump back in office, the administration has expanded CIA surveillance operations over Mexico (with permission) and initiated the process of labeling major drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations—a step that signals a willingness to treat them as threats on par with jihadist networks.
Conservative think tanks are adding fuel to the fire. A recent Heritage Foundation report argues that cartel networks are growing stronger, not weaker, and suggests that existing security cooperation is faltering. While the report stops short of explicitly calling for unilateral U.S. intervention, it raises the possibility that Washington could act independently if Mexico refuses deeper engagement.
Sheinbaum has long been accused of having cartel supporters propping up her presidency. Earlier in the year the Mexican president, in response to tariffs, sent 10,000 troops to the border to fight fentanyl shipments to the United States. The move, however, was met with laughter from the cartels. “There are always weak links, always ways to maneuver,” a cartel leader told media outlets, and Sheinbaum’s refusal only shows she can only go so far before feeling heat from the corrupt elements of her government.
