Mexico Appoints Roberto Velasco As New Foreign Minister At Critical Moment For U.s. Ties

MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s president connected Wednesday designated Roberto Velasco, nan overseas ministry’s subsecretary for North America and a starring master successful bilateral relations pinch nan U.S., arsenic nan country’s caller overseas curate during a captious clip for Mexico-U.S. relations.

The erstwhile minister, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, a 74-year-old psychiatrist who has been a cardinal personnel of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, requested to measurement down for wellness reasons, nan president’s agency announced Wednesday connected societal level X.

Velasco, a 38-year-old lawyer pinch a master’s grade successful Public Policy from nan University of Chicago, has been progressive successful Mexico’s overseas relations pinch nan U.S. and Canada for six years, first arsenic North America wide head and past arsenic subsecretary. He stepped successful for De la Fuente for a fewer weeks aft a room past year. His assignment must beryllium ratified by nan Senate.

He is considered 1 of nan foremost experts connected nan method intricacies of bilateral relations during nan extremity of President Trump’s first management and successful this 2nd term. He has led galore bilateral and trilateral negotiations connected security, migration, nan economy, nan separator and nan guidance of shared waters.

When Trump returned to power, Velasco became De la Fuente’s right-hand man during a play of turbulent relations betwixt nan 2 countries, which are now astatine 1 of their astir captious points. It remains to beryllium seen whether nan young charismatic has nan basal governmental clout astatine specified a difficult times.

Velasco will beryllium successful complaint of starring Mexican diplomacy amid negotiations to revise nan U.S.-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement, and Trump’s continued unit successful nan conflict against nan cartels astatine a clip erstwhile nan U.S. president has shown willingness to motorboat subject operations against those he considers his enemies, including Mexico’s state Cuba.

Previously, Velasco had served arsenic spokesperson for Marcelo Ebrard, nan existent system secretary, erstwhile Ebrard was Mexico’s overseas curate during nan first portion of erstwhile Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration.

Outgoing curate De la Fuente, who served successful nan domiciled since October 2024, was known for his discretion and negotiating skills. He accompanied Sheinbaum passim nan modulation period, received envoys from then-U.S. President Biden, and was responsible for preparing nan full U.S. consular web for nan deportations announced by Trump.

When nan Republican returned to nan White House successful January 2025, De la Fuente became a cardinal fig successful nan negotiations pinch his administration, ever maintaining a debased floor plan and afloat aligned pinch Sheinbaum successful exercising be aware successful nan look of Trump’s impulsive societal media posts. In September, he hosted U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio successful Mexico City.

Arturo Sarukhan, Mexico’s erstwhile ambassador to nan U.S., said “the reshuffle successful nan overseas ministry was agelong overdue” but he didn’t want to remark astir Velasco and wished him bully luck.

Verza writes for nan Associated Press.