Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Friday that she and President Trump had an hour-long “cordial” meeting in Washington that ended with both leaders inviting them to visit each other’s countries.
“We will adjust the schedule later,” Sheinbaum told reporters in front of the Mexican Cultural Center.
This meeting is the first time the two have met in person. Months of conflict continued between the United States and Mexico some controversial Issues such as trade, immigration and how to fight drug trafficking.
But on Friday, two world leaders were brought together by soccer.
Sheinbaum was in Washington with Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to attend the 2026 drawing at the Kennedy Center. The United States, Mexico and Canada are co-hosting the soccer tournament, which begins in June.
In a social media post, Sheinbaum said the three leaders discussed “the great opportunity that the 2026 FIFA World Cup represents for our three countries and the good relationship we have.”
“We have agreed to continue to work together with the team on trade issues,” she added.
She later told reporters that the meeting had been “very positive” and that she had impressed on Trump that Mexico was an “extraordinary” country. She said she personally invited him to visit Mexico and invited him to come back to Washington.
When Trump asked her if she had any questions, she replied, “Nothing in particular.”
After months of friction between the two countries, Friday’s talks could break the ice and set the stage for policy negotiations that allow the two presidents to overcome pressure from their constituencies.
Since the start of his second term in January, President Trump has threatened to impose hefty tariffs on Mexico, the United States’ largest trading partner, but so far Mr. Sheinbaum has been able to follow through.
Mr. Trump and his team have also indicated that the United States may attack criminal suspects and criminals. But Mr. Sheinbaum insists he will not allow the U.S. military to fight drug cartels within its borders.
The ongoing negotiations come in the wake of changes in Mexican attitudes toward President Trump and the United States, but in contrast, it was announced in July that Mexicans continue to view their government’s border controls positively.
cheerful aftermath The outcome of Friday’s talks confirmed the deep differences between the leaders of the two countries, which share a nearly 3,000-mile border and deep economic, security and cultural ties.
North America’s two presidents could not be more different. Sheinbaum is a scientist and lifelong left-wing activist who maintains a low profile. Trump is a real estate mogul who loves right-wing stories and craves attention.
Sheinbaum has had to walk a fine line, fighting off President Trump’s repeated threats to impose punitive tariffs on imports from Mexico, which relies heavily on cross-border trade with the United States.
He also rejected Trump’s suggestion that U.S. troops could be stationed in Mexico to attack drug cartels. Even as President Trump ponders gang attacks in Mexico, she remains steadfast in her belief in “cooperation, not subordination.”
In various remarks, President Trump praised Sheinbaum as “amazing” and “brave,” while also making it clear that he refused U.S. military aid to fight Mexican cartels because she was “deadly afraid” of them.
Sheinbaum is attacked The United States has attacked suspected drug-trafficking ships in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean, killing dozens of people. She also declared Mexico’s opposition to U.S. military intervention in Venezuela and other parts of Latin America.
Mexico’s president has repeatedly insisted his country is “nobody’s piñata.”
Throughout his career, Trump has long used Mexico and Mexicans as a political punching bag in response to anti-immigrant sentiment in the United States. During his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump declared Mexican immigrants to be criminals, drug traffickers and even “rapists,” acknowledging that some were “good people,” but repeatedly pledging to build a “big, beautiful wall” along the U.S.-Mexico border. Mexico will pay. It wasn’t.
After Friday’s meeting, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson told X that the meeting “reaffirmed our historic, results-based partnership,” adding that “our dialogue will advance a high-level agenda focused on cooperation, security, and prosperity.”
Staff writers Ceballos reported from Washington and McDonnell reported from Mexico City.
