“No use of military force in immigration operations,” and “no, repeat, no mass deportations”: Secretary Kelly

MEXICO CITY (TIP): In a first and carefully worded rebuke senior Mexican officials have expressed “worry and irritation” about US policies during a visit by two of President Donald Trump‘s top envoys, who in turn seek to cool tempers after weeks of tension between the two neighbors.

With a stern look while speaking to reporters on Thursday, February 23, after closed-door meetings with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Homeland Security chief John Kelly, Videgaray said it is “a complex time” for Mexican-US relations.

“There exists among Mexicans worry and irritation about what are perceived to be policies that could be harmful for the national interest and for Mexicans here and abroad,” Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray told a news conference on Thursday.

The US government this week angered Mexico by saying it was seeking to deport many illegal immigrants to Mexico if they entered the United States from there, regardless of their nationality.

The immigration guidelines are the latest point of tension between neighbors already tense over Trump’s vow to build a wall on the border and his attempts to browbeat Mexico into giving concessions on trade.

Videgaray and President Enrique Pena Nieto have been criticized at home for being too willing to engage with Trump. However, relationships between the two countries have gone downhill in the past few weeks.

Both sides on Thursday pledged further dialogue on migration, trade and security issues facing both nations.

Kelly and Tillerson were much more measured in their words than either the Mexicans or Trump, who on Thursday said a military operation was being carried out to clear “bad dudes” from the United States.

‘No mass deportations’

For their part, Kelly and Tillerson sought to cool tempers as they adopted a more measured tone than either the Mexicans or Trump, who on Thursday said a military operation was being carried out to clear “bad dudes” from the US.

Kelly said there would be “no use of military force in immigration operations,” and “no, repeat, no mass deportations”.

None of the US officials made direct references to the deportation of immigrants from third countries to Mexico, or to paying for the border wall planned by Trump, a red-flag issue for Mexico. Both sides at the Mexico City talks on Thursday pledged further dialogue on migration, trade and security issues facing both nations. Al Jazeera’s John Holman, reporting from Mexico City, said Mexico has been criticized as “timid” in confronting issues with the US in the past, but since Trump came into office it has grown “tougher”.

“Usually, this is a quiet and cordial meeting. That’s how it has been for decades. But not under the administration of Donald Trump,” Holman said.