"I've already got a bit of experience with these things," joked Claudia Sheinbaum, president of Mexico, in response to the letter sent to her by US President Donald Trump on Friday, July 11, notifying her that his government will impose a 30% tariff on Mexican imports starting August 1.
The head of state of the United States' main trading partner has indeed become accustomed to the situation. Since Trump returned to power on January 20, his administration has made 12 tariff announcements targeting Mexico either directly or indirectly. These have included ultimatums, targeted attacks on specific products – such as steel, aluminum and tomatoes – and last-minute reversals.
In his 13th announcement, Trump justified the tariffs by citing fentanyl trafficking, a synthetic opioid responsible for an overdose epidemic in the US. "What Mexico has done, is not enough," he declared in his letter to Sheinbaum, despite her government having arrested and extradited dozens of drug traffickers to the US and stepped up fentanyl seizures, managing to reduce the smuggling of the drug into the neighboring country by 40% in just a few months.
You have 74.86% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.