Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro blinked first when Donald Trump threatened punishment if the South American country didn’t release American hostages and accept the repatriation of its citizens who are in the U.S. illegally. After sputtering and threatening, Maduro nonetheless agreed on the repatriation demands and released six American prisoners to Special Envoy Ric Grenell on Friday.
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino also talked smack about Trump’s threat to take back the Canal if the Central American country didn’t do something about the increased Chinese influence there. On Sunday, Mulino—after a meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio—decided not to renew its 2017 memo with China regarding their “Belt and Road Initiative.”
Blink.
One person who is not blinking, however, and is instead staring right back at Trump for the time being is Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who’s in a major snit over the 25 percent tariffs the president announced over the weekend.
She’s vowing retaliation, although she’s not giving any specifics:
🔴 BREAKING:
Claudia Sheinbaum, President of Mexico, puts out a lengthy statement declaring she will not back down in the face Donald Trump’s trade war. pic.twitter.com/vcOd0tg1XK
— 𝗡𝗶𝗼𝗵 𝗕𝗲𝗿𝗴 ♛ ✡︎ (@NiohBerg) February 2, 2025
Sheinbaum posted a long statement to X Sunday and insisted her government wanted dialogue instead of a trade war. I bet she does, because a tariff battle would hurt them much more than it would hurt the U.S.
“I’ve instructed my economy minister to implement the plan B we’ve been working on, which includes tariff and non-tariff measures in defense of Mexico’s interests,” Sheinbaum posted, without specifying what U.S. goods her government will target.
The United States is by far Mexico’s most important foreign market, and Mexico in 2023 overtook China as top destination for U.S. exports.
Mexico has been preparing possible retaliatory tariffs on imports from the U.S., ranging from 5% to 20%, on pork, cheese, fresh produce, manufactured steel and aluminum, according to sources familiar with the matter. The auto industry would initially be exempt, they said.
Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on X that Trump’s tariffs were a “flagrant violation” of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
“Plan B is underway,” Ebrard said. “We will win!”
Related: Trump: Tariffs May Hurt, but ‘Will All Be Worth It’ in the Long Run
NEW: Trump Follows Through on Holding Canada, Mexico, and China Accountable, Signs EO
It’s not the only tough talk coming out of the Mexican president. In late January, she clapped back at Trump’s decision to name the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” by saying she’d like to rename the United States “Mexico America.” I give her points for creativity on that one.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum says she will file a complaint against Google for adopting the name “Gulf of America” and request that United States territory be renamed “Mexico America.”
We all know Sheinbaum is terrified of President Trump and doesn’t mean anything she… pic.twitter.com/vYtXKZuVoE
— George (@BehizyTweets) February 1, 2025
We all know Sheinbaum is terrified of President Trump and doesn’t mean anything she says. She’s the most unserious president in the world.
We’re very early on in this new administration, but already we’re seeing a pattern develop: 1) Trump says what he intends to do on the international stage, 2) Whatever leader is affected immediately vows resistance and revenge, then 3) Said leader promptly blinks, gives in. We shall see if that’s what happens with Canada and Mexico in this emerging battle of the tariffs.
