Mexican President accuses Pentagon of spying, vows safeguarding info
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Mexico's President says his country will safeguard information from the Navy and the MoD because it is being a target of spying by the Pentagon.
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Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador speaks during an event to mark the 85th anniversary of the expropriation of foreign oil firms, in Mexico City, Mexico March 18, 2023. (Reuters)
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador revealed on Tuesday that the Pentagon was spying on his government and that he will start classifying military material to safeguard national security.
His remarks came following a Washington Post report -- based on leaked US intelligence documents -- which revealed what it described as an apparent rift 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 said during his daily press conference.
Simultaneously, a Pentagon spokesperson commented on Obrador's remarks, claiming that the US Department of Defense has a "strong collaborative defense partnership" with Mexico's Army and Navy and that the entities address common challenges "while respecting each other's sovereignty and respective foreign policy agendas."
On Monday, the Mexican leader had referred to the US intelligence in the leaks as an "abusive, overbearing intrusion that should not be accepted under any circumstance," pointing out that he did not plan to scold the US, instead, he would at some point review "conditions for collaborative work."
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