President Claudia Sheinbaum defended the participation of Interior Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch in a DEA conference held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The trip highlights the ongoing tension between Mexico and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration regarding communication and cooperation in the fight against narcotics.
Sheinbaum said the delegation attended the conference to fight fake news and respond to what she described as the agency's "double discourse." The president said the DEA's messaging is often contradictory, stating, "Unas veces dicen un tema y otras veces dicen otro tema" [1].
Addressing diplomatic tensions, Sheinbaum also said that the Mexican government is not engaged in a targeted campaign against Argentina. "Es falso que haya una campaña de México contra Argentina," she said [2].
During the proceedings, García Harfuch emphasized Mexico's commitment to legal cooperation with the U.S. He said that Mexico has 155 capture orders with the purpose of extradition to the U.S. [3].
The event took place on July 27, 2024, bringing together security officials to discuss regional drug trafficking. Sheinbaum said the presence of the interior security secretary was necessary to ensure the Mexican government's position was clearly represented against inconsistent reports from the agency.
“"Unas veces dicen un tema y otras veces dicen otro tema"”
This exchange underscores a strategic effort by the Sheinbaum administration to maintain a public image of cooperation with U.S. law enforcement while simultaneously criticizing the DEA's communication methods. By highlighting the specific number of extradition orders, Mexico aims to provide empirical evidence of its cooperation to counter narratives of reluctance or inefficiency in joint security operations.
