By Diego Oré, Emily Green and Stephen Eisenhammer
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -The U.S. government has revoked the visas of at least 50 politicians and government officials in Mexico amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on drug cartels and their suspected political allies, two Mexican officials told Reuters.
A handful of these cases have been publicized, but Reuters reporting shows the visa cancellations are far more widespread than previously reported.
According to three former U.S. ambassadors, previous administrations have revoked visas in this way – but not to the same degree, which they said was indicative of President Donald Trump’s willingness to use the diplomatic tool to achieve policy goals.
“The Trump administration is finding new ways to exert more pressure on Mexico,” said Tony Wayne, U.S. ambassador to Mexico from 2011 to 2015.
The move has sent quiet shockwaves through Mexico’s political elite, who regularly travel to the U.S. and require a visa to do so. It also marks a significant broadening of U.S. anti-narcotics action, with the Trump administration targeting active politicians usually seen as too diplomatically sensitive.
One of the sources, a senior Mexican politician, said more than 50 politicians from the ruling Morena party have had their visas revoked, as well as dozens of officials from other political parties. The sources requested anonymity to speak on a sensitive topic.
Reuters was unable to ascertain the names of the Mexican officials whose visas have been revoked. So far, only four have publicly confirmed they lost their visas, including Baja California state Governor Marina del Pilar Avila, who has categorically denied any links to organized crime.
The U.S. does not need to provide explanations for revoking someone’s visa and the threshold for doing so is much lower than for imposing sanctions or a prosecution, sources said.
In response to a Reuters request for comment, a senior U.S. State Department official said: “Visas, including those held by foreign officials, may be revoked at any time” for “activities that run contrary to America’s national interest.”
“The Trump administration has had a good working relationship with the Sheinbaum government, and we look forward to continuing to advance our bilateral relationship in the interest of the America first foreign policy agenda,” the official added.
Mexico’s presidency and the Mexican foreign ministry did not reply to requests for comment.
‘THE VISA SNATCHER’ STRIKES
The Trump administration has also been revoking visas elsewhere in Latin America against perceived political and ideological foes.
Christopher Landau, former U.S. ambassador to Mexico and the State Department’s no. 2 official, has made no secret of his penchant for denying access to the U.S., referring to himself on X as “El Quitavisas,” which translates to “The Visa Snatcher.”
The State Department said last month it would pull Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s visa after he spoke at a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York and urged U.S. soldiers to disobey Trump’s orders. Petro hit back, declaring: “I don’t care.”
In Brazil, more than 20 top judges and officials have lost their visas, while in Costa Rica, at least 14 politicians and business leaders, including former president and Nobel Prize Peace laureate Oscar Arias, have had theirs revoked. Arias, who had been critical of Trump on social media, said he was given no reason for the revocation.
In Mexico, the widespread visa revocations – especially of members of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling Morena party – threaten to complicate the country’s already uneasy relationship with the United States.
Amid high-stakes trade negotiations and security talks, Sheinbaum has opted to collaborate closely with the U.S. to go after the cartels. Still, she has condemned repeated suggestions by Trump administration officials that the U.S. could take unilateral military action in Mexico, which she has said would violate Mexico’s sovereignty.
A third source with knowledge of the visa process said the revocations are part of Trump’s security strategy, adding that the administration’s designation of some cartels as terrorist organizations means intelligence held by the Drug Enforcement Administration increasingly impacts someone’s U.S. visa status.
ProPublica first reported that U.S. officials expected to revoke dozens of visas of political figures in Mexico for suspected links to the cartels. Reuters reported in June that the Trump administration was pressuring Mexico to investigate and prosecute politicians with suspected links to organized crime.
NO EXPLANATION NEEDED
The U.S. has refused to give explanations for the visa revocations to the individuals involved, four Mexican sources said, sowing confusion among officials that they could be next as well as concern it could mean they are under criminal investigation. Nearly all of the people impacted have avoided talking about it publicly because it is seen as a stain on their reputation, the sources said.
Roberta Jacobson, who served as ambassador to Mexico from 2016 to 2018, said when she was in government visa cancellations of politicians usually only happened because of a conviction or an ongoing criminal case. She said having a visa pulled could indicate that the U.S. is investigating the person for criminal activities, but not necessarily.
“The likelihood is that you won’t know whether or not the U.S. is investigating potentially for years,” she said.
The State Department does not publish figures on how often it revokes visas of foreign officials but John Feeley, ambassador to Panama from 2015 to 2018, said he did not recall any Panamanian politician having their visa canceled when he was ambassador.
He said the widespread revocations could backfire and strain U.S.-Mexico cooperation on security. “It could spur blowback, where President Sheinbaum sees collaborating with the U.S. as too high of a political cost.”
(Reporting by Diego Ore, Emily Green and Stephen Eisenhammer in Mexico City; additional reporting by Ricardo Brito and Lisandra Paraguassu in Brasilia, Alvaro Murillo in San Jose and Elida Moreno in Panama City; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
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