Mexico and Peru restore diplomatic ties as former PM Bettsy Chávez arrives in Mexico City
Mexico and Peru have agreed to restore diplomatic relations following the arrival of former Peruvian Prime Minister Bettsy Chávez in Mexico on Friday, President Claudia Sheinbaum announced during her morning press conference.
The breakthrough comes after Peru's new government, led by President Keiko Fujimori, granted safe passage to Chávez, who had been sheltering in Mexico's embassy in Lima for several months under Brazilian protection. A Mexican Air Force plane traveled to Peru to transport the former prime minister to Mexico.
"With this act of good will toward Mexico, relations with Peru are going to be reestablished," Sheinbaum told reporters. She characterized the safe passage arrangement as a positive gesture from the Fujimori administration.
The diplomatic crisis began in November 2025 when Peru severed relations with Mexico after Chávez, who faces rebellion charges in Peru, was granted asylum at the Mexican embassy in Lima. Chávez briefly served as prime minister during the administration of Pedro Castillo, who was ousted by Peru's Congress in 2022.
Despite the normalization of diplomatic ties, Sheinbaum made clear that Mexico's position on Castillo remains unchanged. "We are going to continue defending President Castillo," she said, noting that Peru's new government is aware of Mexico's stance. Last September, Sheinbaum described Castillo's removal from office as a coup.
Inflation drops to lowest level since 2020
During Friday's press conference, Sheinbaum highlighted positive economic news, announcing that Mexico's headline inflation rate fell to 3.12 percent in July, down from 3.37 percent in June. The president described the decline as "very important."
According to data published by the national statistics agency INEGI, the July inflation figure represents the lowest rate since May 2020 and sits just above the Bank of Mexico's 3 percent target.
Former Guerrero governor arrested over Ayotzinapa case
When asked about the Thursday arrest of former Guerrero Governor Ángel Aguirre, Sheinbaum denied any political motivation behind the detention. Aguirre is accused of ordering the concealment of security camera footage showing the bus carrying students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers College on September 26, 2014, when 43 students were abducted and presumably murdered.
"It has nothing to do with a political issue. It's part of an investigation," Sheinbaum said, explaining that the arrest resulted from months of work by the Federal Attorney General's Office using new investigative methods and scientific analysis.
Aguirre served as governor of Guerrero from 2011 to 2014, representing the Democratic Revolution Party after decades with the Institutional Revolutionary Party.
President rejects fracking in Tampico-Misantla basin
Sheinbaum confirmed that her government would follow an expert committee's recommendation against hydraulic fracturing in the Tampico-Misantla basin, located in Veracruz and Tamaulipas states.
"In the Tampico-Misantla basin, no fracking there," the president stated. "Why? Because there are Indigenous peoples, because the nature is very rich, because the environmental impacts would be very serious."
The decision affects one of Mexico's most resource-rich shale basins. While ruling out fracking in this specific location, Sheinbaum has previously suggested that new technologies could make the practice sustainable in other areas, though no final decisions have been made regarding large-scale fracking in two northern Mexican shale basins.
Officials to address avocado export suspension
Sheinbaum announced that Mexican officials would meet with U.S. Embassy representatives Friday morning to discuss the suspension of avocado certifications in Michoacán due to security concerns. The president said the objective of the meeting was to address American government concerns with the aim of resuming avocado exports to the United States.
