[Text/Observer Network, Liu Bai]
After months of negotiations and concessions, Mexican President Simbo finds himself caught up in a cycle of pressure from the White House.
The Mexican president, known as the "Trump interpreter", has repeatedly defused tense negotiations with Trump. Even Trump called out "I like her a lot" and repeatedly extended the buffer period for tariffs on Mexico.
But this "honeymoon period" seems to be coming to an end.
Trump pushed his luck, but Sinbaum couldn't take it anymore.
In a long article published on August 30, the New York Times revealed the difficulties Symphony faced.
Deploying tens of thousands of soldiers to the U.S. -Mexico border; accusing Mexican banks of money laundering; threatening to increase tariffs; revoking the visas of some Mexican politicians; listing some Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations... In the past few months, Trump has stepped up his high-pressure offensive against Mexico, using multiple means to force Sinbaum to give in, leaving her on the defensive, with little room for maneuver.
In every confrontation with Trump, Shenbaum gritted his teeth and emphasized that there is an insurmountable red line, that is, the violation of Mexico's sovereignty, especially unilateral military action.
However, news broke this month that Trump secretly signed an executive order allowing the use of military force to fight Latin American drug cartels classified as "foreign terrorist organizations."
"There will be no intrusion," Mr. Sheenbaum said at the time, responding to concerns. "That has been ruled out."
Four days later, her government further complied with additional U.S. demands and handed over 26 people accused of being members of a senior drug cartel to the United States. This is the second such transfer this year, with a total of 55 people, none of whom are subject to normal extradition procedures.
Two days later, Trump told reporters that because of him, Mexico finally respected the United States again. He said triumphantly: "Mexico will do as we say."
According to four people close to the Mexican government, Simbaum has felt very upset.She and the cabinet felt that they had spent a lot of energy on meeting Washington’s demands, but it never seemed enough.
Since Sheinbaum took office nine months ago, the Mexican government has stepped up its crackdown on powerful drug cartels, arresting 30,000 people accused of committing "major crimes." By contrast, her predecessor only arrested 12,300 people in six years.
During her tenure, murders declined, drug seizures increased, and illegal border crossings all but stagnated.
However, the United States still complains that the Mexican government has shown dysfunction and hesitation in fighting the drug issue.
For example, in July this year, a man man managed to escape under Mexican surveillance while waiting for extradition to the United States in Mexico.
The White House then again called on Mexico to step up its struggle, and Trump threatened to impose a new 30% tariff on Mexican imports.
Simboom once again sought a tariff extension through negotiations.
After the two presidents spoke, Trump suspended planned tariffs for 90 days, saying the two sides would seek a trade agreement. Trump wrote on social media that the conversation was "very successful because we got to know each other more and more."
But tensions rose again last week when the US announced that the US and Mexican governments would undertake "bold bilateral action" against drug cartels.
Simbaum then replied that he was unaware of this.
She said the U.S. has only trained four Mexican drug detectives, and she has criticized the U.S. for exaggerating its cooperation in several press conferences.
A source close to Sinbaum's administration said the two countries had actually agreed on a joint operation and intelligence-sharing plan, while stipulating that the operation must respect Mexican sovereignty. Sinbaum plans to meet with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Rubio in the next week.
Lila Abed, a former Mexican official who is now director of the Mexico program at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, said Singbaum's situation is extremely difficult.
"The problem is that there is no clear standard for measuring whether Mexico is doing enough," she said."President Trump and his team can indeed change the rules at any time."
All negotiations are faced with a reality: the Mexican economy is centered on the United States, with cross-border trade between the two countries reaching $1.2 million per minute, according to Mexican data.
"Does Sheinbaum still have a choice?" Abed said. "For the future of her government, if it doesn't, it may be worse."