New US President, Donald Trump, and Enrique Pena Nieto, the President of Mexico, are set to meet later this month, following a phone conversation on Saturday, according to officials. Sean Spicer, the White House Press Secretary, says the date for the meeting is 31 January, when the two leaders will discuss issues such as security, trade, and immigration.
A statement to say that the phone call took place in the morning has been issued by Pena Nieto’s office, saying that the Mexican President congratulated Trump on his inauguration as President and expressed his willingness to work together to benefit both nations, with a focus on their shared responsibility and mutual sovereignty. Pena Nieto reiterated his interest in maintaining a dialogue with the new US President, with a high-level delegation from Mexico set to go into talks with officials from the Trump administration on 25 – 26 of this month.
Trump has pledged to build a wall on the border between the US and Mexico in a bid to stop undocumented Mexican immigrants crossing over and that the latter country will ultimately pay for its construction, despite Mexico’s refusal to do so. Trump has also warned several companies that they will face a border tariff on products made in Mexico and then exported to the US.
Trump and Pena Nieto met in August, in Mexico City, when the former was still in the middle of his ultimately successful Presidential election campaign.