Mexico thanks Trump for holding off on terrorist designation for drug cartels2Photo© firstpost.com

Mexico thanks Trump for holding off on terrorist designation for drug cartels

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US President Donald Trump on Friday pulled back on his stated plans to designate Mexican drug cartels as terror groups, saying he was doing so at the request of his counterpart Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Last month, Trump called for a “war” on the cartels after the killings of nine women and children from a US-Mexican Mormon community, but south of the common border, his plans were seen as unwanted meddling.

Mexican officials asked for clarification, and said they wanted to make progress on efforts to stem the flow of weapons and money from the United States to criminal gangs in Mexico.

Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard had reacted more forcefully, saying: “Mexico will never allow any action that means a violation of its national sovereignty.” While Trump said in a tweet Friday evening that “all necessary work has been completed to declare Mexican Cartels terrorist organizations,” he said he was putting a hold on the move out of respect for Lopez Obrador.