Mexican president warns against foreign meddling

Alsharq Tribune-Ahmed Essam 

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday celebrated the Cinco de Mayo holiday by declaring that no foreign power should dictate the country's course and that political opponents seeking support from abroad are destined to fail.

Commemorating the 164th anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, when Mexican forces defeated a much larger invading French army, Sheinbaum stressed that nothing is more important than sovereignty, independence and the national interests of the Mexican people.

"Those who seek foreign support, as they lack the people's support, are destined for defeat... Those who think the president is bowing down: they are destined for defeat," Sheinbaum said in a speech in the central state of Puebla.

Her remarks come just days after the U.S. government requested the extradition of 10 Mexican citizens, including the governor of northwest Sinaloa state, Ruben Rocha Moya, for alleged crimes in connection with arms and drug trafficking.

They also follow the recent revelation that two U.S. CIA agents, who were killed in an anti-narcotics operation in northern Chihuahua state, were operating on Mexican soil without the knowledge of the federal government.

"To our neighbors, to the United States, we say... we are clear and resolute. History tells us that the people of Mexico are not mistaken when it comes to defending national sovereignty... no foreign power is going to tell Mexicans how to govern ourselves," said Sheinbaum.

At the commemorative event, the president swore in 31,000 soldiers into the National Military Service and nearly 800 female volunteers, whom she called upon to keep alive the memory of May 5, 1862, as a symbol of resistance against foreign invasions and internal divisions.