Mexico on Tuesday suddenly replaced two of its top diplomats responsible for U.S. relations, citing concerns over growing hostility toward Mexicans across the border.
Carlos Sada, previously the consul in Los Angeles, was named ambassador to the United States while Paulo Carreno, one of President Enrique Pena Nieto’s communications chiefs, was appointed the deputy foreign minister for North America, Reuters reported.
Mr. Sada’s appointment must be approved by the Senate.
Following the appointments, a Mexican official said the changes were made in response to increasing anti-Mexican attitudes in the U.S.
“We have been warning that our citizens have begun to feel a more hostile climate,” Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu told local radio after the announcement, Reuters reported.
“This (anti-Mexican) rhetoric has made it clear that we have to act in a different way so that this tendency being generated doesn’t damage the bilateral relationship,” she added.
Mexican officials have expressed concern about the rise of GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump over his controversial remarks on Mexico and his plan to force Mexico to pay for a border wall.
Mr. Trump on Tuesday said he would block remittances from undocumented Mexican migrants if elected president unless the Mexican government agrees to pay billions of dollars to fund the wall.
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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