Claudia Sheinbaum criticizes US over visa denials

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum criticised the United States on Friday over recent visa denials affecting Mexican politicians, saying they reflected what she called a politically motivated desire to intervene in Mexico.

Her comments came after Andres Manuel Lopez Beltran, the son of former president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, published an open letter to President Donald Trump on Thursday attacking the revocation of his visa.

Lopez Beltran, who until last May was a senior member of the ruling Morena party, accused US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of ordering the visa revocation.

A US Embassy spokesperson in Mexico told AFP that visa records are confidential and that the embassy could not discuss individual visa cases.

The United States has withheld or denied visas to numerous Mexican politicians since 2025, including mayors and governors. Local media have reported on potential ties between some of those officials and organised crime gangs.