Ever since The New York Times published an article detailing how fentanyl is produced in clandestine laboratories across Mexico, officials from both countries have expressed contrasting analyses on the matter.
The report sent shockwaves through the Mexican government, even reaching President Claudia Sheinbaum, who said the article lacked veracity and implied fentanyl is not produced in the ways the American news outlet made it out to be.
In the article, two New York Times reporters and a photographer showed how cooks worked under hazardous conditions, preparing the synthetic opioid in makeshift facilities and without adequate protections against toxic fumes. Lab workers wore minimal protective gear, citing a built-up tolerance to the chemicals.
During the visit, the cook in charge demonstrated the production process, mixing chemicals to create the drug, which is later pressed into pills for the U.S. market. The lab's small kitchen was filled with supplies, including acetone, sodium hydroxide, and dye used to color the pills.
In the latest back-and-forth of this saga, outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said in one of his last public appearances that contrary to what Sheinbaum and other Mexican officials claimed, fentanyl is indeed produced in Mexico.
"The debate about if fentanyl is or isn't produced in Mexico is not what we have to be talking about, with all due respect to the Mexican government," Salazar said.
During the early days of his tenure, Salazar had a close relationship with former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), but that friendship turned sour after Salazar critiqued some decisions taken by the AMLO administration in recent months, such as constant questionings of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada's arrest in July 25 of 2024 or his handling of the country's "hugs not bullets" policy to address escalating cartel-related violence and crime.
Ever since Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential elections, Salazar has been more outspoken about some of the most concerning issues in the bilateral diplomacy, including security, migration and economic deals.
During his farewell speech, Salazar said there is optimism about the relationship between both countries, adding that "in times of crisis there has to exist the opportunity to find a solution...in the long run, the best results are always those that come from working together."
Salaazar also sent a message to the Sheinbaum administration, recommending to find a common ground with President-elect Trump's wishes of curbing illegal crossings and stopping drug trafficking cartels.
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