Mexico on Tuesday sent 26 captured cartel operatives to the United States, Mexican officials announced, in an apparent bid to alleviate the intense pressure the country faces from President Trump to do more to combat the powerful cartels that smuggle fentanyl across the border.
The transfer is the second such move by Mexican officials, who sent 29 cartel leaders to the United States in February — a decision that sparked debate in Mexico over the legal grounds and political sense of such a gambit.
For months, Mexico has been under intense pressure from Mr. Trump, who has threatened high tariffs over issues like immigration and combating drug cartels. Although the Mexican government has worked hard to curb migration and launched an aggressive campaign against the Sinaloa Cartel, U.S. officials have consistently asked for more action.
On Friday, The New York Times reported that Mr. Trump had secretly ordered the Pentagon to use military force against Latin American cartels that his administration had deemed terrorist organizations.
There have been conversations between Mexican and U.S. officials over the transfer in recent days, according to four people with knowledge of the talks who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe private negotiations.
The Mexican government said on Tuesday that the 26 people being extradited were “wanted for their links to criminal organizations for drug trafficking, among other crimes, and represented a permanent risk to public security.” It said that the U.S. Justice Department committed to not requesting the death penalty for the inmates.
On Friday, the news of Mr. Trump’s Pentagon directive appeared to surprise President Claudia Sheinbaum, who had been saying that Mexican and American officials were nearing a security agreement to expand their cooperation in the fight against cartels. Speaking to reporters shortly after the news broke, she flatly rejected the idea that U.S. military forces would operate inside of Mexico without the permission of Mexican authorities.
“The United States is not going to come to Mexico with the military. We cooperate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion. That is ruled out, absolutely ruled out,” she said. “It is not part of any agreement, far from it. When it has been brought up, we have always said no.”
Earlier Tuesday, Mexico’s attorney general’s office announced that it had extradited to the United States a woman accused of trafficking drugs across the border in 2016 and 2017. It was unclear if she was part of the group of 26 operatives extradited.
Jack Nicas is the Brazil bureau chief for The Times, leading coverage of much of South America.
Maria Abi-Habib is an investigative correspondent reporting on Latin America and is based in Mexico City.
Alan Feuer covers extremism and political violence for The Times, focusing on the criminal cases involving the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and against former President Donald J. Trump.
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