Mexican president slams US for spying, vows to restrict military information

Mexico City: In response to leaks in US media, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday accused the Pentagon of eavesdropping on his administration and declared he would start classifying military data to safeguard national security. His remarks came after the Washington Post, citing a US military briefing made public by internet leaks of classified US military information, reported on alleged tensions between Mexico’s Navy and Army. “We’re now going to safeguard information from the Navy and the Defense Ministry because we’re being a target of spying by the Pentagon,” Lopez Obrador told his daily news conference. A Pentagon spokesman said the US Department of Defense has a “strong collaborative defence partnership” with Mexico’s Army and Navy, and that the entities tackle common challenges “while respecting each other’s sovereignty and respective foreign policy agendas.” The Pentagon has previously called the leak a “deliberate, criminal act.” The Washington Post story said there was no indication the cited document came from intercepted communications of Mexican officials. Lopez Obrador has come under pressure to hold the military accountable for years of alleged abuses, including reported disappearances and killings. Even so, he has increased the army’s role in public safety and sought to put the National Guard, a militarized police force, under Army control. On Monday, Lopez Obrador had described the US intelligence in the leaks as an “abusive, overbearing intrusion that should not be accepted under any circumstance,” adding that he did not plan to rebuke the US, but would at some point discuss “conditions for collaborative work.” When presented on Tuesday with new allegations of the use of controversial spyware Pegasus during his government, he reiterated that his administration does not spy. Prominent Mexico-based rights group Centro Prodh on Tuesday said two of its staff had their phones targeted by Pegasus last year, according to an analysis by Toronto-based digital watchdog Citizen Lab, becoming the latest of several alleged cases of Pegasus used during Lopez Obrador’s government. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.