Statements by the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, after the imposition of the tariff war by the United States. teleSUR
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00And then there is one for Mexico.
00:05In terms of the articles that come from Mexico, I've imposed additional tariffs to certain
00:10goods to address a national emergency that comes from illegal migration and drugs through
00:18our southern border, in conformity with the executive order that was published on February
00:231st.
00:24If you remember, it's the first time that he announced tariffs related to migration
00:31and fentanyl.
00:35After this meeting, after this published, we had a first call with President Donald
00:42Trump, if you remember.
00:44And then we reached a month to postpone the imposition of the tariffs, modified by the
00:51executive order of February 3rd in 2025, which is the one that gave us another month.
01:00And the progress on our southern border and executive order 14227 of March 2nd, that also
01:10spoke of new tariffs.
01:17As a result of these tariff measures in the border, all goods coming from Mexico and Canada
01:23under the terms of the general statement – I think this is the other document, well – all
01:30goods coming from Canada and Mexico, including any treatment established in relation with
01:42the treaty between the United States, the Mexican states, and Canada, will continue
01:48to be eligible to enter the U.S. market under these preferential conditions.
02:00Without any other goods from Canada and Mexico that are not original from the country under
02:08T-MEC, we'll have additional tariffs of 25 percent.
02:14So everything that is within T-MEC has no tariffs.
02:16It's a preferential treatment.
02:19Everything that is outside T-MEC has the 25 percent tariffs that is the agreement that
02:28we reached on March 6th with President Trump in that call that we had and that we reported
02:34here.
02:44There is a section where it speaks of the 12 percent.
02:59Any value of the tariffs on – so it currently is subject to tariffs of 25 percent.
03:11While things imported from Canada that doesn't qualify under T-MEC can have another 10 percent
03:18tariff.
03:20Any other tariff on imported goods from Canada and Mexico under the terms of this order will
03:28not be applied for more of the tariffs.
03:31Well, what it says is that the tariffs don't add up.
03:37From this, all the articles will be suspended from the ones that are considered from the
03:43T-MEC.
03:44Here we go.
03:50As long as the articles that do not qualify original from T-MEC will be subject to a tariff
03:56of 12 percent.
03:58However, these tariffs on imported goods from Mexico and Canada will not apply to energy
04:04and resources.
04:05It's what is being repeated.
04:08Maybe we can find the other publication that has not that many technical terms.
04:18There's another statement because this is the most technical one.
04:27What it says is that if there is more progress in reducing the traffic of fentanyl, then
04:37the tariffs will go down from 25 percent.
04:41So that's the preferential treatment that Mexico has.
04:47What's missing?
04:49Well, to better the conditions for the car industries and the conditions for steel and
04:57aluminum.
04:58Mr. President, you said here that the major impact will be for consumers in the United
05:10States.
05:11But there are millions of Mexicans, 39, 39 million migrants in Mexico living that will
05:22be affected.
05:26So it's 39 million from different generations, and we're counting second and third generation
05:32that are citizens of the United States and have the nationality of Mexico, meaning that
05:37they have two nationalities.
05:39Those of first generation, I think it's only like six million.
05:45These Mexican migrants leave their consumer there and will be impacted by these tariffs.
05:49Their economy has been impacted by other measures that the president has established in that
05:54country like raids and threats of deportations.
06:00There are many that work in the informal sectors that don't go out to work in the same way.
06:05What is your message to them?
06:07That we will always protect them and help them and embrace them.
06:13We will always counsel them.
06:17If any of them want to return, we will welcome them with open arms.
06:24We continue with the program Mexico Embraces You, but they will always be protected and
06:28taken care of by the government of Mexico.
06:31And we will always look as well for the best conditions for Mexicans in the United States.
06:38And I would like to know what percentage of the goods that are not included in TEMEC
06:47receive a tariff and how big is the damage, is the harm?
06:53Well, the car industry represents like 30 percent of our exports to the United States.
07:03What does it say about the car industry?
07:08What they published like a week ago?
07:11If you have it.
07:14This is a summary of the other document that is simpler.
07:28It doesn't have that many technical terms in its writing, but it says the same.
07:35For Canada and Mexico, the existing order of fentanyl migration continues in force and
07:43will not be affected by this order.
07:48This means that the goods that fulfill with the U.S. MCA will continue to have a zero
08:00percent tariff.
08:03Everything that is within the U.S. MCA, those goods that are not compatible with the treaty
08:10will have a tariff of 25 percent.
08:14It means, as Marcelo explained, exports from Mexico and other countries to the United States,
08:23in particular in Mexico, had two ways to avoid tariffs, to avoid taxes on the part of the
08:33United States to what they were importing.
08:38What were those two ways?
08:40One is the trade agreement.
08:44The other way is a clause of the World Trade Organization that is called the Most Favored
08:54Nation, that it was valid until yesterday that President Trump decided to have a different
09:06scheme of tariffs for the whole world.
09:12So in our case, in Mexico, a very important part is exported through the agreement, and
09:19the other one through the clause of Most Favored Nation.
09:23If you're on that one, on the second, you will have a tariff of 25 percent.
09:29What can you do to not have one go through the agreement?
09:37Many companies have come close to the Secretary of Economy that were exporting through the
09:41Most Favored Nation to enter the agreement, and it's doable.
09:48Is it good for Mexico?
09:49And yes, because there we have a clause of origin that means that more product and more
09:56content must be produced in Mexico.
10:02The clause of Most Favored Nation beyond the legal aspect of the World Trade Organization
10:10at this moment for the United States is not valid because it has imposed tariffs on the
10:16whole world.
10:18So what it means is that most companies will look and we will provide the facilities to
10:24enter its exports through the trade agreement.
10:31In case that the existing orders of fentanyl and migrations are overturned, the goods compatible
10:40with the agreement will continue to receive a preferential condition, and the ones that
10:48outside of the agreement will have a preferential tariff of 12 percent, meaning if you are within
10:54the agreement, it's zero percent, and if it's outside the agreement, if the conditions of
11:00fentanyl is improved, it will go from 25 percent to 12.
11:05Is this understood?
11:10Do we have also the – what we have to do with the cars industry?
11:17I don't think it's this one.
11:35It's a section that is less technical.
11:38Here it is.
11:41To all vehicles imported by the United States from the whole world, it will impose a 25
11:49percent tariff.
11:50All vehicles, parts from all over the world, from Europe, from Asia, from Australia – I
12:00don't know if they are making cars – from all countries that export cars, a week ago
12:11the United States imposes a tariff of 25 percent.
12:15What was published for Mexico and Canada?
12:17In the case of cars that qualify within the preferential treatment of tariffs under the
12:23agreement, importers of these cars can present documents to the Secretary that identify the
12:31quantity of U.S. equipment in every model in the United States.
12:36So what is being said is that the part that is made in the United States is going to be
12:40discounted.
12:41Remember that we have said that many parts of the cars go – come and go.
12:47So according to what they published, and we continue to have a better preferential
12:54treatment, the content from the United States in those cars will not be charged.
13:02Well, in the case of cars –
13:22– in the case of vehicles, until now, because – I say until now because we are still talking
13:37– vehicles that are exported from Mexico to Canada will have – from Mexico – sorry
13:44– from Mexico to the United States will have a 25 percent tariff with the exemption
13:50of the parts that are made in the United States.