The Mexican government has qualified the ultimatum imposed by the United States to deliver 246 million cubic meters – out of a debt of 986 million cubic meters – before December 31. Since Monday, Mexico has started to gradually send water to its northern neighbor to try to resolve the deficit with a new review date, which will be January 31. The United States’ request could be met, which is part of the 1944 treaty. It is not that we are delivering more than what the treaty says and it is not that we are giving water that we do not have,” President Claudia Sheinbaum explained on Monday.
“They requested that a quantity of water be delivered until December, but we said that this could not be done, not only physically, but that there would also be consequences if it was done in such a short time. An agreement was reached to deliver it in a longer time frame,” the president continued. “Now we will see, depending on the amount of water available during the rainy season, how the deficit can be resolved.”
In a joint statement issued last Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) announced that the phased shipment of 249 million cubic meters of water, the quantity demanded by President Trump, would begin to be delivered from this Monday. Furthermore, in the same text, the Mexican government recognizes its deficit with the United States, where agricultural entrepreneurs, the governor of Texas and Trump himself affirm a deficit of more than 986 million cubic meters carried over for years. “A number of actions have been reviewed to meet Treaty obligations, including prompt retribution for the exceptional deficit from the previous water cycle, in accordance with the 1944 Water Treaty,” they said.
The US government, which had threatened to impose 5% tariffs on Mexico if it did not start delivering the water it was owed, celebrated the agreement: “President Trump is putting American farmers first and clearly demanding that our international partners meet their obligations and commitments. Once again, the United States is being treated fairly,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Friday.
The releases promise relief to hundreds of ranchers and farmers in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley, who have seen their crops and the local economy perish due to lack of water. Republican politicians in the entity, the most important for the conservative party, have long demanded that Washington exercise a strong hand in relations with Mexico so that it can cover its deficit.
The two administrations will continue revising the treaty and continue negotiations to finalize a new plan before January 31. The Sheinbaum government declared in April that it was impossible to comply with the provisions of the treaty, which obliges Mexico to give its neighbor 2.185 million cubic meters of the Rio Grande. The reasons for this were the drought in states like Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas, which affected farmers and ranchers.
The Water Treaty of 1944 established that Mexico must provide to the United States, over five-year periods, one-third of the surpluses of six rivers that feed the Bravo River. This amount cannot be less than 2.158 million cubic meters. To avoid falling behind, the country must deliver around 431 million cubic meters per year. In exchange, Mexico receives discharges from the Colorado River for an annual volume of 1,850 million cubic meters.
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