- The Washington Times - Wednesday, February 25, 2015

The Mexican government is angry at Pope Francis over his lamentation over the “Mexicanization” of his native Argentina.

The head of the Catholic Church said in a private email to a friend that increased drug trafficking in Argentina was worrying him.

“Hopefully, we are still in time to avoid the ’Mexicanization.’ I was talking to some Mexican bishops, and it’s a terrible situation,” Francis wrote, CNN reported Wednesday.

Mexico’s chief diplomat, Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Meade, said he planned to send a note of protest to the pontiff over the term ’Mexicanization’.

“We would like to express our sadness and concern about the statements made regarding a private letter from Pope Francis,” Mr. Meade said, CNN reported.

“The pope did not in any way intend to offend the Mexican population, for whom he holds special affection, nor to underestimate the commitment of the Mexican government in its fight against narco-trafficking,” the Vatican’s secretary of state said Wednesday, CNN reported.


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• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.

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