MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The United States’ top diplomat landed in Mexico on Thursday with debate swirling over the government’s efforts to win favor with Washington and save the NAFTA pact from collapse, sparking concerns it is ceding sovereignty to its northern neighbor.

Mexico has been at pains to prove itself a good ally to the United States on combating drug trafficking and immigration, in hopes this would help efforts to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement on as favorable terms as possible.

Those secret efforts sprang into view this week, when Reuters exclusively reported that Mexico is considering allowing U.S. air marshals aboard commercial cross-border flights, igniting a debate over what lengths Mexico should go to in order to win favor with its top trade partner.

“The question is, what else is (Foreign Minister Luis) Videgaray giving to Trump and his collaborators in exchange for preserving NAFTA?” Salvador Garcia Soto asked in his El Universal newspaper column, decrying Videgaray’s “opaque” maneuvering.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson landed in Mexico City on Thursday afternoon and was due to have dinner with Videgaray and other senior Mexican government and national security officials at U.S. Ambassador Roberta Jacobson’s residence.

Although Tillerson has not been a prominent player in the NAFTA discussions, the future of the treaty is certain to loom over his visit, especially at a trilateral meeting with Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday.

Mexico’s government, and particularly the foreign ministry, has pushed hard to defend NAFTA, a lynchpin of its export-led economy, ahead of a July 2018 election in which the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party is currently polling third.

“All our efforts right now are based around NAFTA and making sure the pact doesn’t collapse,” said a senior Mexican diplomat.

Videgaray has said closer cooperation with the United States is the best way to achieve Mexico’s foreign policy aims.

“Obviously that would be something that we strongly want to avoid,” Videgaray said at an event in New York late last year, referring to NAFTA collapsing. “We realize that we could achieve much more by being constructive and by approaching the relationship looking for common ground ... with very active cooperation.”

Quizzed by ruling party lawmakers on Tuesday, Videgaray denied the air marshals were part of any NAFTA quid pro quo, but said the government was studying the plan.

Tillerson’s Mexico City visit is the first leg in a week-long Latin America trip in which he hopes to keep up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro over his restrictions on domestic political opposition.

Earlier on Thursday, in a speech at his alma mater University of Texas at Austin, Tillerson raised the prospect that the Venezuelan military could decide to oust President Nicolas Maduro but said he did not know whether that would happen.

Tillerson insisted the Trump administration was not advocating “regime change” in Venezuela but said it would be “easiest” if Maduro chose to leave power on his own.

In his most important regional policy statement since his appointment, Tillerson also warned Latin American countries against excessive reliance on economic ties with China, while sounding alarm over Russia’s growing presence.

Tillerson is due to meet with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, and Videgaray for a second time, on Friday, and they are certain to discuss Central American migration and drug trafficking, two areas in which Mexico has sought to work more closely with the United States since U.S. President Donald Trump took office.

Videgaray, who flew to Washington earlier this week ahead of Tillerson’s arrival, is Pena Nieto’s most trusted adviser, and has forged close ties with Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who serves as a senior advisor to the president.

The influential foreign minister has stepped to the fore of regional Latin American efforts to condemn Maduro’s government and has also proved a good friend to the Trump administration on sensitive foreign policy issues including North Korea, Israel and Honduras.

Former Mexican diplomat and intelligence official Gustavo Mohar said it would be foolish to assume such efforts could yield a positive NAFTA result.

“The priority of Mexico’s foreign policy in the short-term has been to reach an agreement with the Trump government on trade,” he said. “But that doesn’t guarantee you anything, because this guy (Trump) is very unpredictable.”</s>Washington's top diplomat held talks Friday with top officials of the country that President Donald Trump has perhaps disparaged more than any other, the United States' neighbor Mexico.

Kicking off his first Latin American tour since being named secretary of state, former oilman Rex Tillerson met with his Mexican counterpart and was later due to talk trade, crime and immigration with President Enrique Pena Nieto.

Before setting off on his trip, Tillerson laid out a vision of the United States and Latin America -- the "democratic hemisphere" -- working together to build a prosperous future.

But first he will have to overcome the aftermath of Trump's aggressive brand of diplomacy.

Trump has called the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) "perhaps the worst deal in the history of the world," has said immigrants from across the southern border bring crime, and he remains determined to build a frontier wall.

On some positions, Trump has softened his rhetoric since his inauguration a year ago, but in this week's State of the Union address he spoke more about cross-border crime and immigration than any other foreign policy topic.

Pena Nieto meanwhile is under domestic pressure not to give up too much ground to his pushy northern neighbor, even though Mexico and Canada are keen to save NAFTA from Trump's threat to rip it up and start anew.

Tillerson, in Latin America to build support for a tough stance against Venezuela's beleaguered government, make the case for closer economic ties and warn of Chinese encroachment, is not the US trade representative and could do without the row.

But, as he sat down on Friday for two- and three-way talks with his Mexican and Canadian counterparts, Luis Videgaray and Chrystia Freeland, the trade deal was in the foreground.

Tillerson has adopted an optimistic approach, whatever Trump's rhetoric.

"I'm a Texan, former energy executive, and I'm also a rancher. I understand how important NAFTA is for our economy and that of the continent," Tillerson told students at his alma mater, the University of Texas, on Thursday before flying south.

"But it should come as no surprise that an agreement put into place 30 years ago, before the advent of the digital age and the digital economy, before China's rise as the world's second largest economy, that NAFTA would need to be modernized."

Another round of NAFTA talks is scheduled for next month, and Canada and Mexico hope a deal can be salvaged.

Tillerson was also due to discuss security and immigration with top Mexican officials, echoing Trump's warning of the need to fight violent drug cartels.

After Mexico, Tillerson -- who is often left with the task of explaining why Trump's "America First" slogan does not mean "America Alone" -- is set to travel on to Argentina, Peru, Colombia and Jamaica, touting his vision of deeper cooperation.

In his pre-tour speech, Tillerson also warned that China and Russia are assuming "alarming" roles in Latin America, and urged regional powers to work with the United States instead.

"Latin America doesn't need new imperial powers that seek only to benefit their own people," he said in Texas.

He also went on the offensive against the leftist government of Venezuela, once a rival center of influence for Latin American nations, now a political and economic basket case.

"The corrupt and hostile regime of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela clings to a false dream, an antiquated vision for the region that has already failed its citizens," Tillerson said.

He noted that the United States, Canada and European Union have imposed economic sanctions targeting Maduro loyalists seen as profiteers or human rights abusers.

He called on Latin America to do the same. The continent's major powers reject the regime, but are cautious about piling on more economic misery with Venezuela on the brink of chaos.</s>MEXICO CITY, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Venezuelans must find a peaceful solution to the democratic crisis facing their country, Mexico’s Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray said on Friday, a day after U.S Secretary of State Rex Tillerson raised the prospect of a military uprising.

Videgaray, who said Mexico would use all available diplomatic means to address the situation in Venezuela, spoke after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland in Mexico City.

Tillerson said on Thursday that the Venezuelan military could decide to oust President Nicolas Maduro, but said he did not know whether that would happen. (Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter and Anthony Esposito)</s>MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico’s foreign minister said on Friday that Mexico would never support a violent solution to the crisis in Venezuela, whether internal or external, a day after U.S Secretary of State Rex Tillerson raised the prospect of a military uprising.

Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray made the comments in a news conference with Tillerson and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland in Mexico City.

Tillerson said on Friday that he wanted to see a free, fair election in Venezuela and a return to the constitution. He added that Mexico should pay attention to Russian intervention in elections around the world ahead of its July presidential election.</s>MEXICO CITY, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Mexico's foreign minister said on Friday that Mexico would never support a violent solution to the crisis in Venezuela, whether internal or external, a day after U.S Secretary of State Rex Tillerson raised the prospect of a military uprising.

Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray made the comments in a news conference with Tillerson and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland in Mexico City.

Tillerson said on Friday that he wanted to see a free, fair election in Venezuela and a return to the constitution. He added that Mexico should pay attention to Russian intervention in elections around the world ahead of its July presidential election. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito and Gabriel Stargardter)</s>Tillerson's Mexico stop kicks off a weeklong trip to Latin America which will take him to Argentina, Peru, and Colombia, with a final stop in Jamaica. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico's foreign relations secretary said Friday that it might come as a surprise but his country's relationship with the United States today is "more fluid" and "closer" than it was with previous U.S. administrations.

Mexico has had well-publicized disagreements with President Donald Trump during the past year over trade, immigration and payment for a proposed border wall. But Foreign Relations Secretary Luis Videgaray said that "with the Trump administration, we're committed to having a very close communication and that has proven to be a tremendous benefit for the relationship."

"It might be surprising to some people, but that's a fact of life," Videgaray said at a joint news conference in Mexico with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland. The three countries are currently renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Tillerson's stop in Mexico kicked off a six-day Latin America trip that will also take him to Panama, Argentina, Peru, Colombia and Jamaica. He was greeted in Mexico City by a handful of protesters holding up signs reading "Dreamers, Trump's hostages," and "We are workers, not terrorists, not criminals."

The three spoke about security concerns, especially the trafficking in opiates and synthetic opiates like fentanyl that have caused a wave of overdose deaths.

"Given the deadly nature of the opioid crisis, we must do more to attack the business model of those who traffic drugs and guns," said Tillerson.

Asked about reports of Russian meddling in Mexico's July 1 presidential elections, Tillerson said "we know that Russia has fingerprints on elections around the world ... my advice to Mexico would be to pay attention."

The three officials said they also discussed the political and economic crisis in Venezuela and its government's decision to push up presidential elections to April under conditions that opponents say overwhelmingly favor President Nicolas Maduro, who is so far the only candidate.

"We shared our concerns for the humanitarian crisis that has unfolded in Venezuela," Tillerson said. "We all urge the Maduro regime to return to free, open credible, democratic elections."

Videgaray was quick to note that Mexico has limits on how far it will go in pressuring Venezuela.

"Mexico will in no case support any option that implies violence," Videgaray said.

Tillerson said the United States wants to see a "peaceful transition."

"If President Maduro would return to the Venezuelan constitution, restore the duly elected assembly, dismantle the illegitimate constituent assembly and return to free and fair elections, then he's happy to stay and run in the free and fair elections," Tillerson said. "If he wants to step aside and let someone else run in them, that's fine."

Venezuelan officials condemned Tillerson's remarks earlier Thursday at the University of Texas. Tillerson said that throughout the course of Latin America's history it has often been the military which has stepped in to "manage a peaceful transition."

That stung the Venezuelan government, whose soldiers have reportedly been going hungry like much of the rest of the population.

Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez went on state television Friday, flanked by a half-dozen military officers in uniform, to denounce Tillerson's comments. He said Venezuela's military is united and would never succumb to the influence of a foreign power.

"You don't know what you are doing," he said. "I invite you to correct yourself."

Venezuelan officials accused Tillerson of using his current trip to increase pressure on governments around the region to join the U.S. in "a perverse plan of aggressions against Venezuela."

AP writer Christine Armario contributed to this report from Bogota, Colombia</s>MEXICO CITY, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Mexico’s foreign minister said on Friday that Mexico would never support a violent solution to the crisis in Venezuela, whether internal or external, a day after U.S Secretary of State Rex Tillerson raised the prospect of a military uprising.

Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray made the comments in a news conference with Tillerson and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland in Mexico City.

Tillerson said on Friday that he wanted to see a free, fair election in Venezuela and a return to the constitution. He added that Mexico should pay attention to Russian intervention in elections around the world ahead of its July presidential election. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito and Gabriel Stargardter)</s>AUSTIN (KXAN) — The University of Texas at Austin will host alumnus and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Thursday for a speech ahead of his five-country trip to Latin America.

Tillerson will discuss the Trump Administration’s Western Hemisphere policy priorities, including democratization and human rights, economic growth and security issues in the region The event, which will be held in the Blanton Auditorium, is co-hosted by the Clements Center for National Security and the Robert Strauss Center for International Security and Law. Tillerson will speak at 1 p.m. While tickets are sold out, the University of Texas is livestreaming the event for those who cannot attend.

Experts say it will be a speech to watch closely.

“Those issues are overwhelmed by questions of immigration and the controversy surrounding immigration,” said Dr. Jeremi Suri, professor of history and public affairs at the university. “One of the key aims the Secretary of State will have will be to show that the United States has a policy that will go beyond immigration — that addresses issues of drug control, but also issues about trade, issues regarding security, democratic development in the Western Hemisphere.”

While immigration is a big topic, so are economic partnerships. Because the U.S. economy is very intertwined with Latin America, changes in the area can affect the U.S and consumers, according to Will Inboden, a UT professor and the Clement Center for National Security executive director.

“The tomatoes, the bananas, the oranges that you’re picking up at the daily grocery store — you may just be thinking about ‘is it bruised or not, and how much does it cost and is my 3-year-old going to eat it for lunch,’ but that particular piece of fruit represents very complex economic and foreign policies and interrelationships that our country has with other countries,” Inboden said.

After his speech, Tillerson will head to Mexico City, Mexico. He then travels to Argentina, Peru, Colombia and wraps up his travels in Jamaica on Feb. 7.

Tillerson received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the university in 1975 and worked his way up the leadership chain at ExxonMobil.</s>MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The United States’ top diplomat landed in Mexico on Thursday with debate swirling over the government’s efforts to win favor with Washington and save the NAFTA pact from collapse, sparking concerns it is ceding sovereignty to its northern neighbor.

Mexico has been at pains to prove itself a good ally to the United States on combating drug trafficking and immigration, in hopes this would help efforts to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement on as favorable terms as possible.

Those secret efforts sprang into view this week, when Reuters exclusively reported that Mexico is considering allowing U.S. air marshals aboard commercial cross-border flights, igniting a debate over what lengths Mexico should go to in order to win favor with its top trade partner.

“The question is, what else is (Foreign Minister Luis) Videgaray giving to Trump and his collaborators in exchange for preserving NAFTA?” Salvador Garcia Soto asked in his El Universal newspaper column, decrying Videgaray’s “opaque” maneuvering.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson landed in Mexico City on Thursday afternoon and was due to have dinner with Videgaray and other senior Mexican government and national security officials at U.S. Ambassador Roberta Jacobson’s residence.

Although Tillerson has not been a prominent player in the NAFTA discussions, the future of the treaty is certain to loom over his visit, especially at a trilateral meeting with Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday.

Mexico’s government, and particularly the foreign ministry, has pushed hard to defend NAFTA, a lynchpin of its export-led economy, ahead of a July 2018 election in which the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party is currently polling third.

“All our efforts right now are based around NAFTA and making sure the pact doesn’t collapse,” said a senior Mexican diplomat.

Videgaray has said closer cooperation with the United States is the best way to achieve Mexico’s foreign policy aims.

“Obviously that would be something that we strongly want to avoid,” Videgaray said at an event in New York late last year, referring to NAFTA collapsing. “We realize that we could achieve much more by being constructive and by approaching the relationship looking for common ground ... with very active cooperation.”

Quizzed by ruling party lawmakers on Tuesday, Videgaray denied the air marshals were part of any NAFTA quid pro quo, but said the government was studying the plan.

Tillerson’s Mexico City visit is the first leg in a week-long Latin America trip in which he hopes to keep up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro over his restrictions on domestic political opposition.

Earlier on Thursday, in a speech at his alma mater University of Texas at Austin, Tillerson raised the prospect that the Venezuelan military could decide to oust President Nicolas Maduro but said he did not know whether that would happen.

Tillerson insisted the Trump administration was not advocating “regime change” in Venezuela but said it would be “easiest” if Maduro chose to leave power on his own.

In his most important regional policy statement since his appointment, Tillerson also warned Latin American countries against excessive reliance on economic ties with China, while sounding alarm over Russia’s growing presence.

Tillerson is due to meet with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, and Videgaray for a second time, on Friday, and they are certain to discuss Central American migration and drug trafficking, two areas in which Mexico has sought to work more closely with the United States since U.S. President Donald Trump took office.

Videgaray, who flew to Washington earlier this week ahead of Tillerson’s arrival, is Pena Nieto’s most trusted adviser, and has forged close ties with Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who serves as a senior advisor to the president.

The influential foreign minister has stepped to the fore of regional Latin American efforts to condemn Maduro’s government and has also proved a good friend to the Trump administration on sensitive foreign policy issues including North Korea, Israel and Honduras.

Former Mexican diplomat and intelligence official Gustavo Mohar said it would be foolish to assume such efforts could yield a positive NAFTA result.

“The priority of Mexico’s foreign policy in the short-term has been to reach an agreement with the Trump government on trade,” he said. “But that doesn’t guarantee you anything, because this guy (Trump) is very unpredictable.”</s>MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The United States’ top diplomat landed in Mexico on Thursday with debate swirling over the government’s efforts to win favor with Washington and save the NAFTA pact from collapse, sparking concerns it is ceding sovereignty to its northern neighbor.

Mexico has been at pains to prove itself a good ally to the United States on combating drug trafficking and immigration, in hopes this would help efforts to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement on as favorable terms as possible.

Those secret efforts sprang into view this week, when Reuters exclusively reported that Mexico is considering allowing U.S. air marshals aboard commercial cross-border flights, igniting a debate over what lengths Mexico should go to in order to win favor with its top trade partner.

“The question is, what else is (Foreign Minister Luis) Videgaray giving to Trump and his collaborators in exchange for preserving NAFTA?” Salvador Garcia Soto asked in his El Universal newspaper column, decrying Videgaray’s “opaque” maneuvering.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson landed in Mexico City on Thursday afternoon and was due to have dinner with Videgaray and other senior Mexican government and national security officials at U.S. Ambassador Roberta Jacobson’s residence.

Although Tillerson has not been a prominent player in the NAFTA discussions, the future of the treaty is certain to loom over his visit, especially at a trilateral meeting with Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday.

Mexico’s government, and particularly the foreign ministry, has pushed hard to defend NAFTA, a lynchpin of its export-led economy, ahead of a July 2018 election in which the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party is currently polling third.

“All our efforts right now are based around NAFTA and making sure the pact doesn’t collapse,” said a senior Mexican diplomat.

Videgaray has said closer cooperation with the United States is the best way to achieve Mexico’s foreign policy aims.

“Obviously that would be something that we strongly want to avoid,” Videgaray said at an event in New York late last year, referring to NAFTA collapsing. “We realize that we could achieve much more by being constructive and by approaching the relationship looking for common ground ... with very active cooperation.”

Quizzed by ruling party lawmakers on Tuesday, Videgaray denied the air marshals were part of any NAFTA quid pro quo, but said the government was studying the plan.

Tillerson’s Mexico City visit is the first leg in a week-long Latin America trip in which he hopes to keep up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro over his restrictions on domestic political opposition.

Earlier on Thursday, in a speech at his alma mater University of Texas at Austin, Tillerson raised the prospect that the Venezuelan military could decide to oust President Nicolas Maduro but said he did not know whether that would happen.

Tillerson insisted the Trump administration was not advocating “regime change” in Venezuela but said it would be “easiest” if Maduro chose to leave power on his own.

In his most important regional policy statement since his appointment, Tillerson also warned Latin American countries against excessive reliance on economic ties with China, while sounding alarm over Russia’s growing presence.

Tillerson is due to meet with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, and Videgaray for a second time, on Friday, and they are certain to discuss Central American migration and drug trafficking, two areas in which Mexico has sought to work more closely with the United States since U.S. President Donald Trump took office.

Videgaray, who flew to Washington earlier this week ahead of Tillerson’s arrival, is Pena Nieto’s most trusted adviser, and has forged close ties with Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who serves as a senior advisor to the president.

The influential foreign minister has stepped to the fore of regional Latin American efforts to condemn Maduro’s government and has also proved a good friend to the Trump administration on sensitive foreign policy issues including North Korea, Israel and Honduras.

Former Mexican diplomat and intelligence official Gustavo Mohar said it would be foolish to assume such efforts could yield a positive NAFTA result.

“The priority of Mexico’s foreign policy in the short-term has been to reach an agreement with the Trump government on trade,” he said. “But that doesn’t guarantee you anything, because this guy (Trump) is very unpredictable.”
Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray Caso, flanked by visiting United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Canadian counterpart Chrystia Freeland, rejects "any option that would imply the use of violence" on the subject of Venezuela. On the eve of his visit, Tillerson had defended the 19th-century United States policy in Latin America and suggested that the Venezuelan Army could manage a "peaceful transition" from President Nicolás Maduro.