Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is using her country’s non-intervention policy as a cover for the fact that Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia were not invited to President Donald Trump’s Shield of the Americas summit.

This week, Sheinbaum claimed that her country believed in not interfering with other countries’ internal politics and in the peaceful resolution of conflicts. When asked this week if she would be attending the Shield of the Americas summit, Sheinbaum simply replied, “No.”

As Breitbart Texas reported, the summit took place this week in Miami and included 12 presidents from Latin American countries who were in favor of a strong military approach against cartels. When he announced the summit, U.S. President Donald J. Trump pointed to Mexico as being the key access point for cartels and mocked Sheinbaum over her soft approach to organized crime.

“I like the president very much, she is a very good person,” Trump said. “I said, ‘Let me eradicate the cartels.’.

“No, no, no, Mr. President,” Trump said, mocking Sheinbaum.”

Breitbart reported:

During his speech, President Trump said, “Cartel violence is the epicenter of instability across the Americas.” He added that these cartels, many of which he designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, “have terrorized our hemisphere for far too long.”

The president invited the Latin American leaders to the summit because “No nation can stand alone against cartels this powerful.” Trump said the 17 nations will stand as a unified front against the narcoterrorist organizations.

“The only way to defeat these enemies is by unleashing the powers of our militaries,” Trump stressed. “In many cases, our forces have been working closely with yours.” He added that these relationships will be expanding and depening in the months ahead.

During her comments this week, Sheinbaum claimed that she was firmly against the U.S. and Israeli attacks against Iran and that she believed in Palestine’s right to exist. That, until those issues were resolved, and the U.S. began implementing a policy of nonintervention, she would be keeping her distance.

Regarding the summit, Sheinbaum claimed she would send an observer. It remains unclear whether a representative from Mexico was in attendance.

The comments from Trump come at a time when the U.S. has been pressuring Mexico to act against drug cartels after that country’s government has allowed them to operate with relative impunity under an approach started by Mexico’s former president and Sheinbaum’s mentor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, known as “Hugs Not Bullets.”  The policy calls for not fighting against cartels but focusing on education and creating economic opportunities to keep people out of the cartel life. In reality, the process has allowed the violence in Mexico to spread, and according to political opponents and various journalists, in reality Mexico’s government has been protecting criminal organizations in exchange for political and financial support.

As Breitbart Texas reported, late last month, acting under pressure, intelligence and direction from the U.S. government, Mexican Army soldiers tracked down and killed Ruben Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the supreme leader of Mexico’s leading terrorist organization Cartel Jalisco New Generation. In response to the death of the cartel boss, CJNG gunmen spread terror throughout Mexico in a series of attacks that brought the country to a standstill.

In an apparent attempt to appease the criminal organization and claiming to be doing it to ensure the peace, Mexico’s Army and National Guard forces provided security for the cartel boss’s funeral, Breitbart Texas reported.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.