Sheinbaum Calls on Trump to Address U.S. Gun Exports and Drug Demand

Amid sustained threats from the Trump administration to attack drug cartels on Mexican soil, President Sheinbaum pushed back against Trump's framing of Mexico as the 'epicenter' of cartel violence. Sheinbaum urged Trump to stem the flow of illegal arms across the border and to address domestic U.S. demand for illicit narcotics, arguing that American gun smuggling fuels cartel violence in Mexico. The exchange reflects ongoing sovereignty friction: Sheinbaum has drawn a red line at any unilateral U.S. military operation on Mexican territory, while cooperating on intelligence-sharing, as evidenced by the February operation that killed CJNG leader El Mencho.