Both President Claudia Sheinbaum and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held conversations with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump after he issued a threat to impose a 25-percent tariff on all Mexican and Canadian exports to the United States.

Trump announced his plan on Truth Social, stating, “As one of my first executive orders on January 20th … This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!”

A day later, Sheinbaum vowed to respond in kind if Trump followed through on his threat.  She released the contents of a letter she intended to send to Trump, emphasizing that “migration and drug consumption in the United States cannot be addressed through threats or tariffs. What is needed is cooperation and mutual understanding to tackle these significant challenges.”

Although Trump’s tariff threat unsettled global markets, many U.S. analysts concurred that is merely a continuation of his past negotiation tactics. “It’s step one, punch in the face, step two, let’s negotiate,” Kieran Calder, the head of equity research for Asia at Union Bancaire Privée, told Bloomberg.

Meanwhile, Trudeau, apparently eager to defuse the indignation that had erupted from Trump’s bombshell threat, quickly picked up the phone and called the president-elect.

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