Image: [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

During his presidential campaign sorties, President Trump has promised to build a wall between the United States and Mexico to curb illegal migration and drug smuggling. Now that he’s in the Oval Office, Trump is starting to deliver on his promises.

Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto is scheduled to have a summit with the U.S. President next week. However that is now cancelled due to the tensions created by Trump’s pronouncements that a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border will be built.

Trump continues to use social media to air his many views. Early Thursday, he tweeted that it is better for the Mexican President not to come to the summit if his government is not willing to pay for the border wall that Trump is set on building.

Nieto used the same technique, announcing that they have sent notice to the White House that he will not be attending the scheduled summit on Tuesday, January 31 via Tweeter. Nieto has repeatedly said that his country will not pay for any border wall.

Ongoing tension

Trump continues to reiterate that a wall along the border is necessary. In an earlier tweet he said that the American job losses and the trade deficit with Mexico were due to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

He talked about the cancellation of the meeting during a congressional Republican gathering in Philadelphia. He said that he and Nieto mutually agreed on the cancellation. He added that it is going to be fruitless anyway as Mexico said they will not pay for the wall. The U.S. president said that he will take a different route because he wants fair treatment from Mexico. Border security should not be taken lightly because it is a serious problem that affects the nation. According to Trump, the Southern border is where most illegal immigration comes from.

Costly undertaking

The U.S.-Mexico border wall, should it be built, will cost about $12-$15 billon, according to Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority leader. On the other hand, Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader, said that the Mexican president just proved that the border wall is a delusional fiction, as it is a multi-million wastefulness in the making. She said that the Republicans should be embarrassed to even have thought of it.

The trade of words between the two leaders is a continuing story. It started last year when Trump began campaigning. At that time, Trump called some Mexicans that entered the U.S. as rapists and criminals and the tension went on pretty much the entire year. The tension escalated in the past 24 hours when it was announced that Trump will be starting the construction of the controversial border wall.

The announcement came out at the same time that a high-level delegation from Mexico was at the White House. The foreign delegation was the first representatives from outside the U.S. to come to the White House since Donald Trump took office. They were there to meet with top U.S. officials including presidential adviser Jared Kushner and Reince Priebus, the Chief of Staff.

Luis Videgaray, the Mexican Foreign Minister was on his way to meet with the Department of Homeland Security at that time but decided not to attend the meeting. Gillian Christensen, the DHS Spokeswoman said that they are willing to schedule a meeting in the future and will keep the partnership and communication lines open.

In the meantime, President Nieto announced that he had ordered the Mexican government agencies to increase immigrant protection. He has instructed Mexico’s 50 consulates in the U.S. to defend Mexican immigrant rights. He closed his video address by saying that his country offers respect and expects respect as well; that they offer friendship to the citizens of the U.S. and hope that favorable agreements will be found soon.