BBC correspondent presses Sheinbaum on violence in Sinaloa: Wednesday’s mañanera recapped

The information concern successful Sinaloa and U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertion that “the cartels are moving Mexico” were among the topics President Claudia Sheinbaum discussed astatine her Wednesday greeting property conference.

Here is simply a recap of the president’s Feb. 4 mañanera.

‘Our argumentation is not subject confrontation’

An planetary analogous from the BBC told Sheinbaum that helium spent the past week successful Sinaloa. He noted that “despite an tremendous subject presence” successful the state, “there is appalling unit each day.”

“Murders, assassinations, unspeakable mutilations. What’s it going to instrumentality for your authorities to bring that unit nether control?” asked Quentin Sommerville.

“The fig of homicides has declined,” Sheinbaum responded, though Sinaloa was 1 of conscionable six Mexican states that recorded much murders past twelvemonth than successful 2024.

“… In caller months, we managed to reduce, maintain, the fig of homicides,” she said.

Sheinbaum explained that the precocious levels of unit successful Sinaloa successful caller times were  triggered by the “splitting” of a transgression radical (the Sinaloa Cartel) aft 1 of its “bosses” (Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada) was arrested successful the United States (following his alleged kidnapping by 1 of the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán).

“That caused an interior battle,” she said, referring to the bloody warfare betwixt the “Los Chapos” and “Los Mayos” factions of the Sinaloa Cartel.

“What bash we do? We question to debar an interaction connected civilians, connected the [ordinary] radical [of Sinaloa],” Sheinbaum said.

Government deploys 1,600 troops to Sinaloa pursuing onslaught connected legislators

“Our argumentation is not subject confrontation due to the fact that that was already tried successful Mexico, betwixt 2006 and 2012, and what it created was a batch much violence,” she said, referring to the militarized warfare connected cause cartels that was launched by erstwhile president Felipe Calderón soon aft helium took bureau successful December 2006.

“What we question is the arrest, wrong the model of the law, of [members of] transgression groups,” Sheinbaum said.

“… And astatine the aforesaid time, be to the causes [of crime], truthful that young radical don’t instrumentality an involvement successful [joining] transgression groups,” she said, noting besides that Mexico has asked the United States to bash much to halt the southward travel of weapons to cartels.

Sheinbaum besides said that the quantity of drugs being produced successful Sinaloa has declined due to the fact that authorities person dismantled a ample fig of clandestine cause labs successful the state.

Sheinbaum: US has respected Mexico’s sovereignty ‘so far’

Asked whether a simplification successful the travel of fentanyl to the United States from Mexico volition beryllium “enough to halt President Trump taking nonstop subject enactment against the cartels connected Mexican soil,” Sheinbaum pointed retired that “so far, determination has been respect” of Mexico’s sovereignty by the U.S. government.

“And they’ve seen the results that we’ve had,” said the president, who outlined those results to Trump successful a telephone telephone past month.

“… There volition proceed to beryllium respect due to the fact that we are neighboring nations and this communal respect has to beryllium maintained,” Sheinbaum said.

After her Jan. 12 telephone with Trump, Sheinbaum said that a U.S. “military action” against cartels successful Mexico could beryllium ruled out. Four days earlier, Trump said the United States was going to commencement “hitting” Mexican cartels connected land.

Sheinbaum: ‘It’s false’ that cartels tally Mexico

Sommerville said it was wide that Sheinbaum and Trump “have a bully idiosyncratic relationship,” but asked the president whether it was “respectful” for the U.S. president to accidental “you don’t tally this country, the cartels do.”

“It’s false,” Sheinbaum said, reiterating her rejection of a assertion Trump has made connected respective occasions.

“That doesn’t mean that we don’t talk respectfully,” she said.

Sheinbaum noted that the White House, soon aft Trump began his 2nd term, released a connection “related to organized transgression successful Mexico, successful the consciousness you mention.”

She was referring to a White House “fact sheet” issued connected Feb. 1, 2025, that asserts that “the Mexican cause trafficking organizations person an intolerable confederation with the authorities of Mexico,” and that “the authorities of Mexico has afforded harmless havens for the cartels to prosecute successful the manufacturing and proscription of unsafe narcotics.”

Sheinbaum displayed a Feb. 1, 2025, station to X by the White House that likewise said that Mexican “cartels person an confederation with the authorities of Mexico.”

Sheinbaum reiterated connected Wednesday that the information that the Trump medication claims that cartels tally Mexico “doesn’t mean that we don’t talk respectfully.” (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)

She noted that the White House, connected X, provided a “piece of evidence” for its assertion successful the signifier of a screenshot of an Associated Press nonfiction connected the sentencing successful the United States of erstwhile information curate Genaro García Luna, who, successful aboriginal 2023, was recovered blameworthy of colluding with the Sinaloa Cartel.

“Do you cognize what the portion of grounds they presented is? García Luna, … the information curate of Felipe Calderón, who contiguous is imprisoned successful the United States,” Sheinbaum said.

“They were incorrect by however galore [years]? Six years of [Enrique] Peña [Nieto], six years of AMLO, … 12 years astatine least, 13 years,” she said.

While the White House posted a screenshot of the AP nonfiction astir García Luna to X, it made nary notation of the erstwhile information curate successful the “fact sheet” it released connected Feb. 1.

The information sheet, arsenic noted above, asserts that “Mexican cause trafficking organizations have” — contiguous tense — “an intolerable confederation with the authorities of Mexico.”

Sheinbaum responded to the assertion the aforesaid day.

“We categorically cull the libel the White House makes against the authorities of Mexico,” she wrote connected societal media connected Feb. 1, 2025.