In the weeks before taking office, Donald J. Trump repeatedly pledged to carry out the largest scale of deportations in U.S. history and militarize the border, even as his transition team debated the impact of his promised moves in the region. He rejected requests for talks from leaders.
He has targeted countries such as Mexico, claiming that immigrants are bringing large amounts of fentanyl into the United States and threatening to impose crippling tariffs. He also focused on Panama, repeatedly claiming that the country allowed Chinese domination and forced the United States to intervene and take back the Panama Canal.
So in addition to the typical congratulatory messages, Trump's inauguration in Washington on Monday also included messages from Latin American leaders, a sharp departure from normal diplomatic norms.
“There is no reason for Mexico to bow down or feel inferior. We are a great country and a cultural power,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said at a daily morning news conference. “Our relationship with the United States will be one of equals.”
She also sought to reassure unauthorized Mexicans living in the United States who face possible deportation. “Mexicans are very important to the U.S. economy, and the Trump administration knows that,” Sheinbaum said. “To my fellow citizens: You are not alone. You must remain calm.”
According to the Pew Research Center, Mexico is the country with the highest number of illegal immigrants in the United States, with approximately 4 million Mexicans living in Mexico without permission as of 2022.
Mexico's Foreign Minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente also said Monday that Mexico is expected to reinstate the “remain in Mexico” policy adopted under President Donald Trump, which forced migrants seeking asylum to wait in Mexico for a deadline. He said he does not support the move. A hearing at an immigration court. Human rights groups claim the policy has been a boon for drug cartel members, who target asylum seekers for extortion, kidnapping and rape.
“Yes, they can do that. It's their right,” de la Fuente said of the United States. But he acknowledged that “some kind of agreement” could be reached, but noted that Mexico has no legal obligation to process migrants' asylum claims in the United States.
Hours later, Sheinbaum congratulated Trump in a message on social media. “As neighbors and trading partners, dialogue, respect and cooperation have always been the hallmarks of our relationship,” she wrote.
But in the midst of a marathon signing of executive orders, Trump said Monday that he would impose 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada on February 1, as they have done in the past to prevent illegal immigration and fentanyl from entering the country. accused of allowing it. US. Mr. Sheinbaum and some administration officials have previously said Mexico needs to hit back at the United States with its own tariffs.
After Mr. Trump took office, Honduran President Xiomara Castro warned earlier this month that she was prepared to expel U.S. troops if Mr. Trump went ahead with mass deportations, but she did not politely welcome them back to Honduras. I just sent a message. office.
But Tony Garcia, the country's deputy foreign minister, said in a phone interview Monday afternoon that the country and several neighboring countries will accept large numbers of planes carrying deportees without first negotiating the process with the incoming administration. He said he has no plans.
Regarding mass deportations, he said, “We cannot do it unilaterally.”
Garcia said there are currently no plans to break the Honduras-U.S. military agreement that allows U.S. military operations from large military bases, but the Castro government is still considering it as a potential option. “They're taking us more seriously.” ”
Last week, foreign ministers from several countries, including Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico and Venezuela, met in Mexico City to discuss responses to the incoming Trump administration. Garcia said the two countries agreed that “no one will be forcibly returned.” If a country says no one can enter the country, no planes can land. ”
It is estimated that Honduras is home to approximately 525,000 illegal immigrants in the United States. According to the Pew Research Center. Garcia said he has received flights carrying more than 500,000 deportees from the United States in the past 10 years. He said the country still plans to accept such flights, but the two governments need to come up with a plan first.
“We are in favor of adjustments,” he said. “Not subordination.”
His words were some of the sharpest for the new president.
Panama, the target of recent criticism by Trump, including his false claims that China controls the Panama Canal and that the United States should take it back, has taken office as president of Jose Raúl Mulino. He directly rejected the president's assertions repeated in his speech.
“The canal now and always belongs to Panama, and its management remains under Panama's control,” Mulino said in a statement published in X.
However, later that day, the Panama Comptroller's Office announced that auditors had visited the county's maritime authority to begin an audit of Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of Hutchison Ports Holding. The company is a major port operator and the country's major port concession holder. It is also part of the Hong Kong-based conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings.
“The purpose of this thorough audit is to ensure efficient and transparent use of public resources,” the Auditor General said.
Trump's His inaugural address, in which he said, “We will repel this disastrous invasion of our country.'' Like many of the executive orders he signed Monday night, he frequently targeted the region.
However, some leaders reaffirmed their intention to work with the new president and support his policy goals.
Cindy Portal, a senior Salvadoran foreign ministry official, said in a radio interview that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who has close ties to Trump and his family, had been invited to the inauguration but did not attend. Instead, the country was represented by an ambassador to the United States.
Ms. Portal did not mention plans to once again postpone deportations of Salvadorans, who are one of the country's largest groups of undocumented immigrants. According to El Salvador, there were 750,000 illegal immigrants living in the United States as of 2022. Pew Research Center.
Portal instead highlighted the relationship between the Boucre administration and both Trump's son and Marco Rubio, Trump's Secretary of State, who was confirmed Monday night.
“The message that we, as the Salvadoran government, are sending to Salvadorans is to be proactive and wait,” she said. “President Trump has made it clear that he will bring back the bad guys who went to destroy.”
She said if Salvadorans are not committing crimes in the United States, they have nothing to fear.
Countries in the region, economically isolated by U.S. sanctions, have had mixed reactions to Trump's return to power and his flurry of orders. Nicaragua's government remained silent, but Venezuela's interior minister wished Trump “good luck.”
In a message on social media, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel condemned the “unjust designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism.” “The extreme economic embargo measures imposed by President Trump have resulted in national shortages and significantly increased migration flows from Cuba to the United States,” the statement said.
But in a turn of events, countries that are also close trading partners of the United States have come to realize that their economies are under threat. By late Monday, Mexican leaders had yet to respond to Trump's tariff threat. But Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc did.
“Our country is absolutely ready for any of these scenarios,” LeBlanc said. “We still continue to believe that it was wrong.”
Report contributor: Simon Romero, james wagner and Yubelca Mendoza Born in Mexico City. Matina Stevis-Gridnev Originally from Toronto. Genevieve Gratzky Originally from Bogotá, Colombia. mary trinny there Born in Panama City. gabriel labrador Originally from San Salvador. Jody Garcia Originally from Guatemala City. and Joan Suazo Originally from Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
