MEXICO CITY _ Two of President Donald Trump's Cabinet secretaries and their Mexican counterparts emphasized cooperation and friendship after meeting in Mexico _ but their public remarks seemed unlikely to quell profound tensions between the two countries or clear up confusion over the plans of the Trump administration.
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Secretary John F. Kelly said Thursday at a news conference that there would be no large-scale deportations from the United States or use of military force along the border _ comments aimed at allaying Mexican fears about the Trump administration's ongoing immigration crackdown.
"There will be no _ repeat, no _ mass deportations," Kelly said at the Mexican Foreign Ministry. "There will be no use of military force in immigration."
Earlier in the day, Trump had lauded Kelly's efforts along the border and had labeled ongoing operations there as a "military operation."
Kelly appeared at the news conference with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, along with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray and Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong.
The two U.S. officials were here on a two-day trip meant in part to repair relations with Mexico at a time when many Mexicans view the Trump administration as hostile to them.
The White House and Mexican officials have clashed on a number of issues, including Trump's vow to build a wall along the border and his pledges to step up deportations and impose a new tax on goods imported from Mexico.
"In our meetings, we jointly acknowledged that, in a relationship filled with vibrant colors, two strong sovereign countries from time to time will have differences," Tillerson said. "We listened closely and carefully to each other as we respectfully and patiently raised our respective concerns."
The U.S. Cabinet secretaries were expected to meet later with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.
In his comments, Videgaray emphasized that it was a "legal impossibility" for Mexico to accept "unilateral" decisions imposed by another government. That was an apparent reference to a Trump administration proposal to send undocumented Central Americans detained along the U.S.-Mexico border back to Mexico _ even though they are not Mexican citizens.
The top Mexican diplomat expressed the nation's "worry" for the rights of Mexican nationals in the United States as the Trump administration embarks on an a wide-ranging crackdown on illegal immigrants. He also referred directly to the "negative feelings that without doubt are prevalent" between the two neighbors with deep economic, social, political and cultural ties.
"It will be a long road to construct agreements with the United States, but today we have taken a step in the right direction," Videgaray said. "The differences between Mexico and the United States remain and we will have to work to arrive at agreements that will be in the interest of Mexico and Mexicans."
Earlier, the Mexican newspaper La Jornada published excerpts of what it described as a private conversation between Videgaray and Mexican lawmakers in which the foreign minister spoke in much harsher terms about relations with the Trump administration.
Videgaray reportedly said Mexico is preparing for a long "battle" with the administration, adding that the country was prepared to retaliate with new tariffs if necessary.
"We are here preparing for a battle that is going to be long," Videgaray told federal deputies Wednesday, according the newspaper, which said it had obtained a copy of the comments. "This is not going to be resolved in three days."
In the reported remarks, Videgaray said Mexico was prepared to retaliate with new tariffs on U.S.-made goods should the Trump administration follow up on its threats to slap an export tax of 20 percent or more on goods imported from Mexico to the United States.
Videgaray was also quoted as saying that time was on Mexico's side: "Time has been wearing down President Donald Trump. He has had missteps that are placing him against the weight of reality."
Trump is also recognizing that the position of U.S. president is not "omnipotent," he reportedly said.
"You know as well as I that we are not going to change Donald Trump's way of thinking, we are not going to convince him, and he is going to continue being president for a long time. But we have to recognize that, yes, we have strategic advantages and strengths in this process of dialogue and eventual negotiation."
Mexico's economy is heavily dependent on trade with the United States, source of about 80 percent of Mexico's exports. The possibility of new tariffs on Mexican exports has sent shock waves through Mexico's already shaky economy.
In his reported private comments, the foreign minister warned that Mexico could not allow the manufacturing sector to be "frozen" too long, amid the current uncertainly about U.S.-Mexico trade: "There is a reality: We don't want to create a climate of dissuading investment in Mexico."
He also emphasized that Mexico did not seek a row with its northern neighbor. "To the whole world, it is clear that the Mexican government did not begin with a logic of confrontation," he said.
There was no official response from the Mexican Foreign Ministry on Videgaray's reported remarks.
