Mexico’s President Tells Trump Meeting Is Cancelled

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January 26, 2017 Edmondo Burr News, US 1
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Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto has scrapped plans to meet with President Trump.

Pena Nieto tweeted on Thursday that his administration has informed the White House he would not be attending a work meeting scheduled for next Tuesday with Trump.

US President Donald Trump had earlier tweeted it would be better to cancel the meeting “if Mexico is unwilling to pay for the badly needed wall.”

Zero Hedge reports:

Nieto decided to pull a Trump, and make the public statement from his own Twitter account

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After canceling his trip, Pena Nieto added that his still wants to work with the US, and reach accords.

And just like that NAFTA may be over. And the peso is plunging…Mexico

With Vicente Fox whining that Mexico “won’t pay for the f**king wall,” and Pena Nieto confirming “Mexico does not believe in walls,” President Trump just double-tweeted exactly how our southern border ‘friends’ will end up paying for the wall or else!…

Did Trump just give Pena Nieto an out for next week’s meeting? We suspect not as the angry tweet seems to have cornered Pena Nieto into a decision.

As a result of the Trump tweet, the Peso has tumbled erasing all the day’s gains…Mexico

The tweet comes after Mexico’s president on Wednesday once again declared that “Mexico will not pay for any wall” but stopped short of cancelling a visit to Washington after Donald Trump signed executive orders that include building the border barrier.

Enrique Peña Nieto reiterated that Mexico would not put a single peso towards the new US president’s signature project. In a televised address he said: “I regret and reject the decision of the US to build the wall.”

“I have said time and time again, Mexico will not pay for any wall,” Peña Nieto told the nation in his short video statement on Wednesday night.

“Mexico reaffirms its friendship with the people of the United States and its willingness to reach agreements with its government.”

He left up in the air the question of the 31 January meeting with Trump in the White House – saying his decision would depend on an evaluation by a team already in Washington and officials at home.

While the costs of “building the wall” are largely unknown, estimates have been made by both political parties…Mexico

Mexico now finds itself in a double bind, squeezed not only by Trump, but also by its partner Canada, which as we reported last night, has left Mexico on its own. Recall that Canada will focus on preserving its U.S. trade ties during talks to renegotiate NAFTA and may not be able to help Mexico avoid being targeted by the Trump administration, Canadian government sources say.

"We love our Mexican friends. But our national interests come first and the friendship comes second," a source said on the sidelines of a cabinet retreat in Calgary, Alberta. "The two are not mutually exclusive," the source added.

In other words, when it comes to preserving NAFTA, it's important, but what is more important is being on good enough terms with Trump to be able to cobble together a bilateral treaty should NAFTA fail. As Reuters reports, the comments are some of the starkest yet by Canadian officials, "who are increasingly convinced Mexico will suffer the most damage from changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement."

Reuters' government sources note Mexico and Canada would appear to have little in common. Trump is unhappy about the large U.S. deficit with Mexico and has promised to punish firms with manufacturing bases there. "Our negotiating positions are totally different. Mexico is being hung out of an skyscraper window by its feet," said a second government source."Mexico is in a terrible, terrible position. We are not," said another Canadian person involved on the trade file.

Nieto just may have to pay for that wall after all.

Edmondo Burr
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