Press. voanews.com.
Republican
presidential candidate Donald Trump says he held "straightforward"
talks in Mexico with President Enrique Pena Nieto on all the issues Trump has
railed about for a year, including illegal immigration and trade.
"I love the
United States very much and I want to make sure the people of the United States
are very protected," Trump told Pena Nieto at a news conference Wednesday
in Mexico City. "You equally expressed your feelings and love for
Mexico."
Trump won much
of his support throughout the campaign with rhetoric that Pena Nieto called
hurtful to the Mexican people. Trump has said the United States' southern
neighbor steals jobs, sends rapists and criminals and murderers across the
border, and does little to stop illegal immigrants. He has insisted Mexico will
pay for a wall that he wants built along the border. Pena Nieto has likened
Trump to fascist dictators Hitler and Mussolini.
But it was a
much more subdued and respectful Trump who spoke after meeting with the Mexican
president. Trump said he has a "tremendous feeling" for Mexican
Americans, calling them "spectacular, hard-working people" and saying
he is proud to employ many in his industries, calling them "beyond
reproach."
Trump said he
and the president talked about the wall at the border, but not about who would
pay for it. But Pena Nieto, contradicting Trump, later said he told the U.S.
businessman that Mexico will not pay for the wall, repeating something he has
said numerous times. Trump did say the North American Free Trade Agreement has
been a greater benefit to Mexico than the United States. He said the
22-year-old deal needs to be updated to reflect "today's realities."
He also said all
countries have a sovereign right to a secure border, including building walls,
and that illegal immigration from Central America through Mexico and into the
U.S. is a humanitarian disaster. Trump said cartels and other criminal gangs
that terrorize northern Mexico can be wiped out only through intelligence
sharing and joint operations.
"The bond
between our two countries is deep and sincere, and both our nations benefit
from close and honest relations ... a strong Mexico is in the best interest of
the United States," Trump said. Pena Nieto spoke directly to Trump at the
news conference, saying his priority is protecting Mexicans wherever they may
be. He said Mexicans living in the U.S. are creative and talented and honest
working people who respect family, their communities and the law. He said they
deserve everyone's respect in return.
Pena Nieto
called the border an asset for both countries, and said that 1 million people
cross it every day. He said Americans who see the border as a problem that
brings in drugs and illegal immigrants are getting an "incomplete
picture." He said the U.S. must do what it can to stop weapons and cash
from flowing into Mexico to the drug cartels.
Trump had
announced his hastily planned visit to Mexico City just days after the Mexican
leader extended the invitation to him and to his Democratic opponent, former
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Pena Nieto drew criticism meeting with
Trump, who is widely reviled in Mexico. Former President Vicente Fox told CNN
that he does not understand why Pena Nieto extended the invitation, saying,
"He [Trump] is not welcome to Mexico. He is going to be rejected by
everybody here."
A few dozen
demonstrators gathered Wednesday in the center of the capital to protest the
visit, some holding signs that read "You are not Wall-come" and
"Trump and Pena out." Trump's visit came hours before he plans to
unveil his new immigration policies during a campaign speech in the border
state of Arizona. Trump has said he could "soften" his hard-line
proposal to create a "deportation force" to send 11 million
undocumented immigrants in the U.S. back home. Pena Nieto said he hopes Clinton
also will accept his invitation to meet in Mexico City.
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