Mexico City (AFP) – Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump on Wednesday stood alongside Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto and reiterated his campaign declaration that the United States can and will erect a border wall to stem illegal immigration.
Adopting a polished tone and praising Mexico’s “amazing people,” Trump portrayed the issues of illegal immigration, drug trafficking and weapons smuggling as common challenges for the allied neighbors.
After a year of lobbing insults across the border, the provocative billionaire candidate made a surprise visit to Mexico in the heat of the US presidential race, seeking to seize control of the narrative and portray himself as a capable statesman on the international stage.
“We recognize and respect the right of either country to build a physical barrier or wall on any of its borders,” Trump said at the presidential residence in Mexico City after he and Pena Nieto held closed-door talks on the issue.
He acknowledged however they did not discuss who would foot the bill, despite Trump persistently stating throughout his campaign that Mexico would bear the financial burden for the highly controversial project.
“We didn’t discuss who pays for the wall,” Trump said.
It was a day of high drama for both men, who found themselves face to face after having exchanged criticisms from afar over the past year.
Months after Trump launched his campaign last year by declaring that Mexico was sending “rapists” and other criminals across the border, Pena Nieto likened Trump’s isolationist positions to those of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and fascist Benito Mussolini.
Pena Nieto has categorically rejected the idea of his country paying for a wall.
On Wednesday, he was more diplomatic, declaring the talks “constructive” and saying it was crucial to transform the countries’ mutual border into “a joint opportunity.”
“Even though we may not agree on everything, I trust that together we’ll be able to find better prosperity and security.”
But he did not hide the fact that many in his country have felt the sting of Trump’s harsh rhetoric.
“Mexican people felt hurt by the comments made,” Pena Nieto said. “But I’m sure that the genuine interest is to build a relationship that will give both of our societies better welfare.”
– ‘Not welcome’ –
Trump stunned the political establishment with his sudden trip south of the border just hours before a planned and highly anticipated speech on immigration policy in Phoenix, Arizona.
But he arrived to a storm of criticism from Mexicans irate over his caustic tirades belittling their country.
“Trump not welcome in Mexico, not by me nor the 130 million Mexicans,” tweeted the country’s former president Vicente Fox, who dropped an “f-bomb” on television in February when describing Trump’s border wall plan.
The visit came just 69 days before the US presidential election, with Trump trailing Democrat Hillary Clinton in most polls.
Pena Nieto, whose approval rating has plummeted since his 2012 election, also invited Clinton, but the former secretary of state’s campaign has announced no plans for a visit.
She had choice words for Trump, however, upbraiding him for his Mexican “photo op” and signalling it was no way to build leadership credibility.
“It certainly takes more than trying to make up for a year of insults and insinuations by dropping in our on neighbors for a few hours and then flying home again. That is not how it works,” Clinton said at an American Legion meeting in Ohio.
Trump has routinely assailed Mexican immigrants who illegally cross the border into the United States. Hardline immigration policies are a key plank of his campaign, including his pledge to create a deportation force dedicated to rounding up those illegally in the country.
Trump has mulled whether to soften his positions, particularly the call early in his campaign to deport some 11 million undocumented migrants living in the shadows. His Phoenix speech is seen as an opportunity to clarify his policy.
– ‘Historic mistake’ –
Trump has vacillated between reaching out to minorities and returning to the anti-immigration rhetoric admired by his most ardent supporters, mainly white working-class males.
His running mate Mike Pence said in a statement that Trump’s trip showed what kind of a “decisive president” he would be.
“This meeting begins a relationship where we can talk about the issues we’ve got to resolve between the United States and Mexico,” Pence said.
Trump also modulated his criticism of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which he has blamed for the outflow of millions of US manufacturing jobs.
While routinely bashing it on the campaign trail as “the worst trade deal” in US history, he said Wednesday the pact “must be improved upon to ensure that workers… benefit from fair and reciprocal trade.”
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.