Simon Lewis

MEXICO CITY, (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken visited Mexico Friday and met with President Andres Manual Lopez Obrador. The two countries are trying to repair fractious ties by negotiating a new security agreement.

In a moment when Biden’s administration is more dependent on Mexico for stemming the flow of Latin American migrants seeking asylum in the United States.

Blinken’s trip is part of Biden’s first U.S./Mexico High Level Security Dialogue. In which both countries will reach a broad new agreement about how to address everything, from drug flow to the United States and smuggling U.S. made guns into Mexico.

Lopez Obrador took Blinken to the National Palace for a mural tour. The two groups then had a working breakfast at which the Mexican leader invited Joe Biden.

Blinken claimed Lopez Obrador’s previous comments are “exactly” in line with Biden’s vision for U.S.-Mexico relations.

I am inspired by your vision. Now we must do the work to turn that vision into reality. It is a transformative partnership and a shared responsibility, Blinken stated at the beginning of the breakfast meeting.

Blinken was accompanied by U.S. Secretary for Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, and U.S. attorney general Merrick Garland.

U.S.-Mexico relations were hit hard last October, when U.S. drug agents detained Salvador Cienfuegos, a former Mexican defense minister. The incident was a blow to the Mexican government. Cienfuegos was released, however the incident strained relations with Mexico and undermined security cooperation.

The U.S. government officials claim that the new agreement is more expansive than the Merida Initiative. Under this program, $3.3B was channeled by the United States to Mexico for crime fighting.

In 2007, the Merida Initiative began providing military equipment to Mexican troops. It later provided training for the Mexican judiciary and security forces. Lopez Obrador, however has voiced his disapproval of the program. He claimed that it had been corrupted by previous governments’ funding and its involvement in security equipment financing during the 2000s.

Mexican officials said that they will be focusing on information sharing, the root causes and the stemming of the flow U.S.-made weapons to Mexico. That was a concern for Lopez Obrador.

However, negotiating a new contract will not be easy. According to Vanda (NASDAQ;) Felbab Brownn, a foreign and security policy analyst, the United States prefers a stronger approach in fighting drug cartels. Lopez Obrador, however, is more comfortable with softer, less confrontational approaches to fighting gangs.

“There is a very small area of overlap,” said Felbab Brownn (a senior fellow at Brookings Institution’s Foreign Policy program), a Washington think-tank. The U.S. has an uncomfortable position because Lopez Obrador’s administration seems to be very happy with the end of security cooperation.

Furthermore, immigration worries could make the discussions about new security cooperation seem a bit dull.

The Biden Administration was hit hard by a surge in Latin American and Haitian immigrants arriving at the U.S.–Mexico border. This crisis prompted Washington to rely on Mexico to stem the flows.

Mexico’s role in immigration management has allowed the Lopez Obrador government leverage to seek more autonomous policies elsewhere, Mexican officials claim privately.

Mexico made it harder for American law enforcement agencies to conduct business in Mexico, especially during the U.S. presidential change early this year. The U.S. media reported that Mexico delayed the visas of U.S. Anti-Narcotics Officers.

According to a senior Mexican security officer, there is optimism regarding the Mexican-American agreement. There may also be room to reconsider the restrictions placed on U.S. agents on Mexican soil. However, conditions can’t return to the way they were prior to Cienfuegos arrest.

According to the Mexican official, “I feel that part of U.S. government realizes that that’s just not possible.”