'Not going to happen': Mexico rules out US military intervention amid border sign dispute

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday dismissed the prospect of allowing US strikes against cartels on Mexican territory, a day after US President Donald Trump said he was prepared to take whatever action necessary to stop drugs from entering the United States.

“It’s not going to happen,” Sheinbaum said, noting that Trump had previously suggested a United States military intervention in Mexico to combat criminal groups. She explained that she had repeatedly told him that collaboration was possible and that the US could share intelligence, but that operations within Mexico would remain strictly under Mexican control. She added that she had conveyed the same message to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who she said had understood her position.

Trump, speaking on Monday, had said, “Would I want strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? OK with me, whatever we have to do to stop drugs,” adding that he was “not happy with Mexico.” Later that day, the US Embassy in Mexico shared a video on X showing earlier comments from Rubio saying that the United States would not take unilateral action in Mexico.

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Officials address confusion over US signs placed on Mexican beach

While the exchange played out publicly, both Mexican and US officials were working on Tuesday to resolve what may have been a genuine US incursion across the border.

On Monday, men arrived by boat at a beach in northeast Mexico and installed signs marking what the US Department of Defence considered restricted land. Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Ministry reported that the Mexican navy removed the signs, which appeared to be located on Mexican soil. Sheinbaum said the International Boundary and Water Commission, the binational body responsible for defining the border, was now involved.

The signs were driven into sand at Playa Bagdad, near the point where the Rio Grande flows into the Gulf of Mexico. Written in English and Spanish, they warned that the area was restricted Department of Defence property under the authority of “the commander,” prohibiting any unauthorised access, photography, or drawings.

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On Tuesday, the US Embassy in Mexico shared a Pentagon statement confirming that contractors had installed the signs to mark “National Defence Area III” at the mouth of the Rio Grande. The Pentagon said that changes in water depth and topography had altered perceptions of the exact border location and that Mexican personnel had removed six signs based on their understanding of the boundary. It added that contractors would coordinate with the relevant agencies to prevent future confusion.

Mexico contacted its consulate in Brownsville, Texas, and later the US Embassy in Mexico City. Sheinbaum said it was ultimately determined that contractors working for a US government entity had placed the signs. She noted that the Rio Grande shifts course and that, under treaty obligations, the border must be clearly defined.

The site lies close to SpaceX Starbase, situated beside Boca Chica Beach on the Texas side of the river. SpaceX’s rocket facility, linked to Department of Defence and NASA projects, drew scrutiny in June when Sheinbaum said the Mexican government was examining contamination after metal, plastic, and rocket fragments were reportedly found on Mexico’s side of the border following a test explosion.

The region remains sensitive, particularly after Trump ordered that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America, a move Mexico rejected.