Mexico denies it agreed to a border enforcement collaboration deal with DEA

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday denied reports that her country has agreed to a border security deal with the United States' Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as part of "Project Portero." 

The DEA announced the alleged bilateral initiative on Monday, which would strengthen collaboration between the two countries in cracking down on illegal drug traffickers, including Mexico's drug cartels.

Sheinbaum denied the alleged collaboration, telling reporters during her morning news briefing that she did not know where the initiative and announcement stemmed from.

“The DEA put out a statement yesterday saying that there is an agreement with the Mexican government for an operation called Portero,” Sheinbaum said. “There is no agreement with the DEA. The DEA puts out this statement, based on what we don’t know. We have not reached any agreement, none of the security institutions [have] with the DEA.”

The DEA claimed the alleged initiative brought Mexican and U.S. investigators together for a multi-week training and collaboration program at one of the DEA's intelligence centers on the Southwest Border.

“DEA is taking decisive action to confront the cartels that are killing Americans with fentanyl and other poisons,” DEA Administrator Terrance Cole said in a statement. “Project Portero and this new training program show how we will fight - by planning and operating side by side with our Mexican partners, and by bringing the full strength of the U.S. government to bear. 

"This is a bold first step in a new era of cross-border enforcement, and we will pursue it relentlessly until these violent organizations are dismantled," he added.

Sheinbaum said four people on Mexico’s police force attended a workshop in Texas related to intelligence operations but that no further cross-collaboration plans were made.

The DEA has not publicly commented on Mexico's denial of the program.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.