Mexican president says energy dispute won't spark trade deal rupture

During his regular morning news conference, Lopez Obrador dismissed the notion there could be a rupture in USMCA, saying it would not be in the interests of Mexico or the United States. However, he said he wanted to send a letter to his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden to underline that Mexico's ownership of its oil and gas resources was explicitly recognized in a USMCA chapter that Lopez Obrador insisted in including in the deal.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday there would be no rupture in the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) over an energy policy dispute, even as he said he planned to write to his U.S. counterpart over the matter.

The United States says Mexico's efforts to tighten state control of the energy market may violate the USMCA trade deal, and last week the U.S. Trade Representative demanded dispute settlement talks with Mexico. Canada quickly followed suit. During his regular morning news conference, Lopez Obrador dismissed the notion there could be a rupture in USMCA, saying it would not be in the interests of Mexico or the United States.

However, he said he wanted to send a letter to his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden to underline that Mexico's ownership of its oil and gas resources was explicitly recognized in a USMCA chapter that Lopez Obrador insisted in including in the deal. Lopez Obrador said he would also urge the United States to respect Mexican sovereignty, and explain its position.