Mexico freezes relations with US, Canada embassies

The Mexican government has paused its engagement with the ambassadors of the United States and Canada, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Tuesday.

The decision comes in the wake of criticism over a sweeping judicial reform proposal in Mexico.

"There is a pause," Lopez Obrador said in a press conference, clarifying that the freeze was with the embassies, from where the criticism came, and not with the countries.

The judicial overhaul plan, suggested by the Mexican president during his final weeks in office, has sparked protests and strikes, and criticism from investors and financial institutions.

What prompted the Mexican 'pause'?

Last week, US Ambassador Ken Salazar called the judicial overhaul proposal a "risk" to democracy that would endanger Mexico's commercial relationship with Washington. Lopez Obrador chided the ambassador, saying he violated Mexican sovereignty.

Salazar has since softened his tone, writing on X that he was open to dialogue. He added on Tuesday that "we always work with the utmost respect for Mexico's sovereignty."

Lopez Obrador pointed the finger at the US State Department, which the Mexican president believed was behind Salazar's criticism.

"We're not going to tell him (Salazar) to leave the country," he said. "I hope that they promise to be respectful of Mexican's independence, of our country's sovereignty. But until that happens, and they continue these policies, it's on pause."

Lopez Obrador also accused Canada's ambassador of interfering in Mexico's internal affairs for expressing apprehension about the judicial proposal.

Mexico, the United States and Canada share a commercial relationship that reached an estimated $1.8 trillion (€1.61 trillion) in trade in 2022, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

jsi/sri (AP, EFE, dpa, Reuters)