Mexico’s president responded angrily Tuesday to President-elect Donald Trump’s
pledge to impose a 25 percent tariff on its products if the country didn’t curb the flow of irregular migrants and fentanyl, warning that the penalties would only wind up causing inflation and unemployment in the United States.
President Claudia Sheinbaum also made clear that Mexico would retaliate with its own tariffs if Trump went ahead with his plan.
“President Trump, it isn’t with threats or tariffs that we resolve the migratory phenomenon or the abuse of drugs in the United States,” Sheinbaum said at her morning news conference, reading a letter she had written to the incoming U.S. leader. “What’s needed to confront these great challenges is cooperation and understanding.
Trump on Monday night said he would impose the 25 percent tariff on Mexico and Canada on his first day in office, to halt the “invasion” of drugs and migrants. He also vowed to introduce a 10 percent tariff on goods from China, the source of precursor chemicals to make fentanyl.