'Build bridges, not walls': Sheinbaum responds to Trump on the wall between Mexico and the US

In his first press conference after winning the election, Donald Trump has announced his commitment to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to continue building the border wall with Mexico, reports La Voz de América. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has reacted quickly to this statement.

"I think we're going to reach an agreement," Sheinbaum said about the border wall, after having held a second phone call with the US president, Infobae reports. Although Sheinbaum wanted to emphasize the idea that "we must build bridges and not walls."

During Sheinbaum's press conference televised by El Financiero Bloomberg, the leader told an anecdote about former President López Obrador, in which she showed Trump a photo of a tunnel through which drugs and migrants pass. She wanted to make him see that the wall will not solve the problems.

Despite this, Donald Trump wants to push ahead with his project and is totally against the sale of border wall materials, a measure recently implemented by Joe Biden, CNN reports. The wall materials are being offered on an auction site.

Another thing Sheinbaum and Trump discussed during their call is preventing caravans from reaching the northern border of Mexico and the southern border of the United States. The president believes that this can be stopped by providing humanitarian assistance to migrants beforehand, something she believes gives good results.

Sheinbaum wanted to mention the good functioning of the CBP One application, a proposal by Joe Biden to legally enter the United States. It is a free tool that was created on January 12, 2023.

It is intended for migrants who are in Mexico to schedule an appointment and go, as indicated, to one of the eight established border points, with the objective of requesting a humanitarian permit that authorizes them to legally enter the United States, explains El País.

Most CBP One applications come from Haiti, Mexico and Venezuela. According to the latest figures from Customs and Border Protection, around 800,000 migrants have arrived legally in the United States since the program was created.

Sheinbaum has made it clear to Trump that the most humane and effective solution to stop migration is to address the causes and invest so that people "do not have to migrate out of necessity." The president has thus spoken of the program they have to employ young people and another to eradicate rural poverty.

One of the solutions that Sheinbaum offers to Trump is to continue with the Treaty between Canada, Mexico and the United States (T-MEC). "We are going to work with high-level dialogues. It is not necessary to put any tariffs or duties as they say, but to strengthen this treaty," Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum wants to reach agreements with Trump as soon as possible, but she has assured that most of the tycoon's appointments, including that of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have not been ratified by the Senate. "Until they are ratified, the dialogues cannot formally begin," Sheinbaum told reporters.

Another of the measures that Sheinbaum has announced is to strengthen the consulates for legal, judicial and procedural support, so that they are much more agile. She has also indicated that her government team is working in the event that there are deportations under Trump in order to be able to receive Mexicans.

Never miss a story! Click here to follow The Daily Digest.