The Mexican ambassador to the United States said Thursday Mexico will never cover the cost of the wall that President Trump wants to build along the southern border, and said Mexico doesn’t think the wall is a good idea whoever pays for it.
“If you ask us as your friendly neighbor, no, we don’t think it’s the best idea, nor necessarily the best use of resources. That’s something for the United States to debate internally,” Ambassador Geronimo Gutierrez said during a border security panel at the Aspen Institute in Washington Thursday afternoon after being asked about the wall. “There are many alternatives, and I just would say that those deserve to be reviewed to the extent possible.”
“And on the question of whether we’re going to pay, That’s the easiest one. The answer is no, with all due respect. That will never happen,” Gutierrez said.
[More: McConnell to seek $5B for border wall]
Sitting next to the ambassador was America’s top border official, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan, who did not reply to Gutierrez’s response.
The Mexican ambassador suggested the two countries divide their shared border into sections and work together on how to address northbound and southbound illegal traffic.
Gutierrez said he is fine with the Trump administration’s decision to further secure its international boundary with its southern neighbor, as long as it meets international law. Trump has pushed to build new barriers along the 1,400 unsecured miles of the 2,000-mile border with Mexico.
