The President of Mexico weighed in on Trump-imposed tariff threats, saying there is no evidence that fentanyl is produced in the country.
“So far, we have not found that precursors arrive, because most of the precursors come from Asia, and that the whole process is manufactured here in Mexico,” President Claudia Sheinbaum told reporters. “The laboratories that have been dismantled in our country are mainly for methamphetamine or crystal meth.”
Most U.S.-destined illicit fentanyl appears to be produced clandestinely in Mexico, using chemical precursors from China, according to the U.S. Congressional Research Service.
Sheinbaum also maintained that she is committed to tackling the distribution of illegal drugs.
She claimed that drug consumption and migration could not be addressed through tariffs, warning Trump that tariffs would directly impact American companies in Mexico such as Ford and General Motors.
Trump on the campaign trail blamed Mexico for the deadly drug and has repeatedly threatened tariffs on the country unless the country curbs the flow of deadly drugs across the southern border.
“On January 20th, as one of my many first Executive Orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% Tariff on ALL products coming into the United States, and its ridiculous Open Borders,” Trump wrote in a November 2024 Truth Social post. “This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!”
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid typically used to treat patients with chronic severe pain or severe pain often experienced following surgery. Drug trafficking organizations typically distribute fentanyl by the kilogram, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). One kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to kill 500,000 people.
President Joe Biden defended his administration’s record on tackling the distribution of illegal drugs. Just last month, the United States coordinated with Mexican security forces to seize 20 million doses of illicit fentanyl last month, according to the White House.
“Under my Administration, we have seized more fentanyl at our border in the last two years, than the previous five years combined,” Biden said in a statement. “We’ve put dozens of major cartel leaders and money launderers behind bars. And latest data shows over a 14 percent drop in overdose deaths across the nation—that’s the largest decrease on record.”
Sheinbaum also said that it was not true that Mexico was “run by the cartels” as Trump claimed. “In Mexico, the people are in charge,” she said.
During another press conference on Wednesday, the Mexican president appeared to respond sarcastically to Trump’s more recent proposal to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, pointing to a 17th century map of greater México which labeled it “Mexicana America.”
“Since 1607, the Constitution of Apatzingán was for Mexican America. We are going to call it América Mexicana. It sounds pretty, no?” she joked.