Sheinbaum mulls an air bridge to Cuba as food shortages worsen: Friday’s mañanera recapped

The anticipation of establishing an aerial span to Cuba and the quest to excavation lithium successful Mexico were among the topics President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke astir astatine her Friday greeting property conference.

She besides offered a constricted effect to skepticism astir the accuracy of the national government’s homicide numbers, which immoderate analysts accidental are being manipulated by authorities Attorney General’s Offices.

Here is simply a recap of the president’s Feb. 13 mañanera.

Mexico could found an aerial span to Cuba

A time aft 2 Mexican Navy vessels carrying much than 800 tonnes of humanitarian assistance arrived successful Cuba, a newsman asked the president whether Mexico could found a “humanitarian assistance aerial bridge” to transport to Cuba provisions brought to Mexico by different countries astir the world.

“If Cuba requests it, past those conditions would exist, of course,” Sheinbaum responded.

“Flights to Cuba aren’t closed,” she added.

Mexico sends 800 tonnes of assistance to Cuba, with much connected the way

After the newsman countered that determination is nary pitchy substance successful Cuba, Sheinbaum highlighted that planes tin refuel successful Mexico.

“In fact, Mexican flights to Cuba, of Mexican airlines, aren’t closed due to the fact that determination is pitchy substance present and [Mexico] is precise close,” she said.

Sheinbaum has pledged to nonstop much humanitarian assistance to Cuba, but her authorities has suspended shipments of lipid to the Caribbean land federation owed to U.S. President Donald Trump’s menace to enforce tariffs connected imports from countries that proviso it with oil.

Cuba is presently facing a scope of problems including substance and nutrient shortages, and predominant blackouts.

On Thursday, Cuba President Miguel Díaz-Canel posted a video to societal media of the humanitarian aid-carrying Mexican Navy vessels arriving successful Havana.

“#ThankYouMexico. Thank you, beloved @Claudiashein,” helium wrote connected X.

#GraciasMéxico. Gracias, querida @Claudiashein. Las ayudas humanitarias de nuestros hermanos mexicanos valen nary sólo como carga material. En ellas viajan la solidaridad, la amistad y la ejemplar historia de soberanía y respeto al derecho ajeno que distinguen a #México. pic.twitter.com/MsuiRjdhI4

— Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez (@DiazCanelB) February 13, 2026

“The humanitarian assistance from our Mexican brothers and sisters is not lone invaluable arsenic worldly goods,” Díaz-Canel wrote, adding that the goods besides correspond “solidarity, relationship and the exemplary past of sovereignty and respect for the rights of others that separate #Mexico.”

Sheinbaum: ‘We don’t nutrient lithium successful Mexico, but determination are reserves’

Four years aft the nationalization of lithium successful Mexico and the instauration of a state-owned lithium company, Sheinbaum acknowledged that the much-coveted alkali metallic isn’t being produced here.

“At this time, we don’t nutrient lithium successful Mexico, but determination are reserves of lithium,” she said.

Sheinbaum reiterated that Mexico’s reserves of lithium — a metallic utilized successful a scope of batteries, including those that powerfulness electrical vehicles — are successful clay deposits that are technically hard and costly to mine.

“The exertion to bash it already exists. The contented is that it’s precise expensive,” she said.

“So we request to trim the costs successful bid to nutrient lithium … that is successful clay soil,” Sheinbaum said.

“On the different hand, enactment is being done connected the brines from lipid wells, wherever determination is besides lithium,” she said.

Sheinbaum noted that the Mexican Petroleum Institute is collaborating with the state-owned lithium company, Litio MX, connected efforts aimed astatine the commencement of lithium mining successful Mexico.

Mexico’s largest lithium deposits are successful Sonora, wherever the national authorities established a lithium mining reserve successful 2023. There are smaller deposits successful different states including Baja California, San Luis Potosí and Zacatecas.

The Mexican authorities established a lithium mining reserve successful Sonora successful 2023, but has yet to nutrient refined lithium owed to the outgo and trouble of extracting from the area’s clay deposits. (Global Atlas of Environmental Justice)

‘Who are they?’ asks Sheinbaum astir security-focused NGO that suggested Mexico shouldn’t big World Cup

A newsman highlighted that the Citizens Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice (CCSPJP), a Mexican NGO, held astatine a property league this week astatine which its president said that it wasn’t a bully clip for Mexico to big the FIFA World Cup owed to insecurity.

“Who said that?” Sheinbaum asked, prompting a newsman to repetition the sanction of the NGO.

“And who are they?” Sheinbaum asked, to which the newsman replied that it is simply a “citizens’ assembly that provides information statistics.”

The property league astatine which assembly president José Antonio Ortega spoke came aft the CCSPJP published its 2025 rankings of the world’s “50 astir convulsive cities.”

Seventeen Mexican cities, including Culiacán, Manzanillo, Colima, Acapulco and Irapuato, were included connected the list, which ranked cities according to their per capita homicide rates.

In summation to suggesting that Mexico shouldn’t beryllium a big of this year’s World Cup, Ortega questioned the accuracy of the national government’s homicide numbers, arsenic different information experts person done.

On Friday morning, Sheinbaum noted that preliminary homicide information comes from the states. Those numbers, she said, are subsequently validated oregon corrected by the nationalist statistic bureau INEGI via a reappraisal of decease certificates.

Three days aft national information officials reported that homicide numbers successful January 2026 were 42% little than the period earlier Sheinbaum took bureau (September 2024), the president asserted that the stated diminution is “not an invention.”

“It’s information from the Attorney General’s Offices, each the country’s Attorney General’s Offices,” she said.

Sheinbaum didn’t respond to assertions that authorities Attorney General’s Offices are not accurately reporting homicides due to the fact that they are incorrectly classifying immoderate murders arsenic little superior crimes. Nor did she respond to claims that the diminution successful homicides during her presidency is related to an summation successful disappearances.