Claudia Sheinbaum says Sara Carter postponed Mexico trip, meeting
Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday, May 21, that Sara Carter will not come to Mexico next week and that the meeting was postponed for agenda reasons. The president said Roberto Velasco told her Carter would not come on Monday, while the meeting with Markwayne Mullin stays on the schedule at Palacio Nacional at 12:00 hours.
Palacio Nacional meeting stays
Sheinbaum kept the meeting with Mullin and said he would also have an extended dialogue with the Security Cabinet headed by Omar García Harfuch. That leaves the U.S.-Mexico security contact in place, but without the anti-drug official Carter had expected to meet in the capital.
“Roberto (Velasco, secretario de Relaciones Exteriores) me comentó del tema de Sara Carter, que no viene (a México) el lunes, que se pospondría la reunión, por motivos de agenda,” Sheinbaum said at her morning press conference. The change shifts the center of gravity toward the meeting that remains at Palacio Nacional.
Sheinbaum rejects irregularity claims
Sheinbaum also rejected the idea that the change was tied to alleged irregularities. She said this kind of rotation is routine inside the Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional and happens every two years, with territorial commanders moved so they do not remain in the same post too long.
“Lo hace normalmente. Es algo que hace cada dos años. La Defensa busca que los mandos territoriales o de alguna área no se queden ahí durante mucho tiempo, sino que sean relevados y pasen a otro lugar. De esa manera va generando nuevas responsabilidades y experiencia,” she said. The comment put the postponement in a broader setting of regular security and military procedure rather than a one-off political dispute.
Sinaloa officials and red notices
Sheinbaum also addressed Sinaloa officials accused of alleged links with Los Chapitos, saying security forces do not have special surveillance over them and that there is no legal basis requiring that. She did not confirm whether those officials remain in Mexico.
She added that if they leave the country, they could be detained because of the red notice issued by the United States, and she said there is an arrest warrant from the U.S. government. “Hay una orden de aprehensión por parte del gobierno de Estados Unidos. Eso hace que se alerten fichas rojas, llamadas por parte de la Interpol. Eso es del gobierno de Estados Unidos. Si ellos llegaran a salir de México, otros países a partir de la alerta roja que emitió el gobierno de Estados Unidos pudieran llegar a detenerlo,” she said.
CNTE and 2027 election rules
In separate remarks, Mario Delgado said the government maintains constant talks with the CNTE and does not see a need for a sit-in during the 2026 World Cup. He said the government is working on the teachers’ demands and that there have already been more than 140 meetings this year.
Luisa María Alcalde also outlined a proposal for political parties to have review tools before choosing candidates for the 2027 elections. The plan would create a Commission for Verification of Integrity of Candidacies under the National Electoral Institute, with five electoral councillors chosen and voted on by the INE General Council.
The immediate diplomatic focus now stays on Palacio Nacional at 12:00 hours, where Mullin is still due to meet Sheinbaum and hold the extended session with García Harfuch. Carter’s postponed visit leaves that gathering as the day’s remaining high-level U.S.-Mexico security contact.
