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US President Donald Trump said Thursday he would impose an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports while moving ahead with levies on Canada and Mexico next week, citing “unacceptable” drug smuggling.Markets opening in Asia on Friday tracked losses across the world from the previous day, as the Republican’s latest comments fanned fears of a global trade war. Trump had announced — then halted — sweeping 25 percent levies on Canadian and Mexican imports this month over illegal immigration and deadly fentanyl, with Canadian energy to face a lower rate. But the month-long pause ends Tuesday.Following reporters’ questions on whether he planned to proceed on the tariffs next week, Trump wrote on social media Thursday that until the problem of fentanyl stops “or is seriously limited,” the proposed levies will happen as scheduled.”China will likewise be charged an additional 10 percent Tariff on that date,” he added, referring to March 4.Earlier this month, Trump imposed a sweeping 10 percent tariff hike on imports from China, prompting Beijing to retaliate.A US official confirmed to AFP that the new 10 percent levy adds to the existing one over fentanyl, saying that there has been “insufficient progress” on the drug front.The official added that Washington had to act against all three countries in order to tackle the fentanyl issue.On Thursday, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao expressed concerns over Washington’s earlier 10 percent tariff.”China firmly opposes this and has taken corresponding countermeasures,” Wang said in a letter to newly confirmed US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer.China’s leadership will convene next week to hammer out plans to shield its economy from Trump’s threats.Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday said she hoped to speak with Trump to avoid being hit by his threatened tariffs.A high-level Mexican delegation is in Washington in search of an agreement.And Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said officials are working around the clock to avert US levies but would have an “immediate” response if measures were imposed next week.Trudeau has repeatedly stressed that less than one percent of the fentanyl and undocumented migrants that enter the United States come through the Canadian border.Trump’s threats have sent shivers through major exporter countries. Asian markets were all well in the red early Friday, with Tokyo briefly shedding three percent.- Reciprocal tariffs -Besides levies over fentanyl, Trump added on Truth Social that an April 2 date for so-called reciprocal tariffs “will remain in full force and effect.”These will be tailored to each US trading partner, with details to come after government agencies complete studies that Trump has called for on trade issues.In his letter to Greer, Wang noted that Trump has called for many trade investigations “aimed at China” and urged both sides to resolve their differences via dialogue.Beijing has pushed back against US fentanyl concerns, saying Washington has to solve the issue itself rather than taking aim at other countries with levies.Rather than the drugs being supplied directly to the United States, a Congressional Research Service report noted last year that US-bound fentanyl appears to be made in Mexico using chemical precursors from China.While some precursors face international controls, others may be made and exported legally from countries like China.In early February, China’s foreign ministry warned that fresh tariffs could hurt counternarcotics cooperation.

Andrew Tate, a right-wing influencer charged with rape and human trafficking in Romania, arrived in the United States on Thursday — the first time he has been out of the eastern European country since his 2022 arrest.Romanian prosecutors allege that self-declared misogynist Tate, 38, his brother Tristan, 36, and two women set up a criminal organization in Romania and Britain in early 2021 and sexually exploited several victims.The brothers traveled to Florida together on a private jet, their lawyer Ioan Gilga told CNN — but received a frosty reception just before landing as state authorities said they were not welcome. The Tates have not stated publicly the purpose of this trip. “We live in a democratic society where it’s innocent until proven guilty, and I think my brother and I are largely misunderstood,” said Andrew Tate after arriving in Fort Lauderdale. “There’s a lot of opinions about us, a lot of things that go around about us on the internet. We’ve yet to be convicted of any crime in our lives ever.”The government in Bucharest said the Tates, who have British and US nationality and have been under judicial supervision in Romania, need to return to court on March 24 and a no-show could lead to “preventive arrest.”Four British women, who have accused Tate of rape and coercive control in a separate case, voiced concern last week that the US government might push Romania to ease the Tates’ travel restrictions and let them escape.Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu has said Richard Grenell, special envoy for President Donald Trump, raised the case at the Munich Security Conference earlier in February.But Trump denied all knowledge of any advocacy for the Tates from his administration — or help in bringing them to Florida.”I know nothing about that. I don’t know — you’re saying he’s on a plane right now? Yeah, I just know nothing about it. We’ll check it out. We’ll let you know,” he told reporters when asked about the visit.Justice Minister Radu Marinescu told AFP on Thursday he was “not aware of any pressure from anyone” and had “not received any kind of request from the US authorities.”A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer — who was visiting Trump in Washington — declined to comment on the situation or whether the UK wanted to see Tate extradited to Britain.”There’s an English element here so obviously it’s important justice is done and human trafficking is obviously to my mind a security risk,” said Starmer, in a brief response to a journalist’s question at the White House.A Romanian court has already granted a British request to extradite the Tates, but only after legal proceedings in Romania have concluded.- Not welcome -In a joint statement on Thursday, the four British women said they “feel retraumatized by the news that the Romanian authorities have given in to pressure from the Trump administration to allow Andrew Tate to travel.” The women are bringing a civil case in the UK against Tate, accusing him of rape and coercive control between 2013 and 2016.Matthew Jury, their lawyer, said Starmer should raise the issue “on behalf of the many British women who Tate is alleged to have raped and sexually assaulted who may now be denied justice.”On Thursday, a Romanian court granted the Tate brothers’ appeal to lift the seizure of their assets — properties, vehicles, bank accounts and company shares, their PR team said.Andrew Tate moved to Romania years ago after first starting a webcam business in the UK.He leapt to fame in 2016 when he appeared on the UK’s “Big Brother” reality television show, but was removed after a video emerged showing him attacking a woman.He then turned to social media platforms to promote his often misogynistic and divisive views on how to be successful.Banned from Instagram and TikTok for his views, Tate is followed by more than 10 million people on X, where his posts are often homophobic and racist.Last year, the Tates were sentenced in a tax fraud case in Britain.Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said before the brothers landed that the state was not involved in organizing their trip, did not welcome them and had been exploring legal options to prevent the visit.”Florida is not a place where you’re welcome with that type of conduct,” he told a news conference.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday released a set of files related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was accused of sex trafficking and other serious offenses but committed suicide before his trial in 2019.Bondi said the files fulfilled a pledge of transparency in governance made by US President Donald Trump, although the documents did not immediately appear to contain any new revelations. The department said many of them had been previously leaked.”This Department of Justice is following through on President Trump’s commitment to transparency and lifting the veil on the disgusting actions of Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirators,” said Bondi in a statement.The documents included an evidence list, flight plans, and a contact book that appeared to be part of the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend who was convicted of sex crimes in 2021.Maxwell has been serving a 20-year prison sentence in New York since 2022.Bondi said her department had received 200 pages of documents in response to a request for “full and complete” files on Epstein.”However, the Attorney General was later informed of thousands of pages of documents related to the investigation and indictment of Epstein that were not previously disclosed,” the Justice Department statement said.Bondi requested the Federal Bureau of Investigation, run by Trump appointee Kash Patel, to provide the remaining documents to her office by Friday morning.Epstein, a financier with a powerful network in the United States and abroad, was accused of raping young girls, but his suicide by hanging in a New York prison in August 2019 halted his prosecution.He was accused of running a sex trafficking ring alongside Maxwell for almost three decades.Unsealed documents in the case included the names of a number of high-profile politicians, celebrities and businesspeople, fueling conspiracy theories around his death in August 2019.The US Department of Justice and the FBI, however, found no evidence of foul play in his death.A 2023 Department of Justice Inspector General’s report, however, found a “combination of negligence, misconduct, and outright job performance failures” led to circumstances that allowed Epstein to take his own life.

US president Andrew Jackson famously reacted to an unfavorable ruling by the Supreme Court chief justice with the defiant rejoinder: “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it.”Nearly 200 years later, the United States teeters on the brink of a constitutional crisis as the administration of President Donald Trump — faced with a series of court setbacks to his aggressive right-wing agenda — flirts with open defiance of the judiciary.Trump has said he will abide by court rulings and appeal those he disagrees with, but he also recently posted on Truth Social a quote attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte: “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law.”Vice President JD Vance and designated cost-cutter Elon Musk, on the other hand, seem to be inviting a clash between the executive and the judiciary.”If a judge tried to tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be illegal,” Vance posted on X this month.Same thing if a judge tries to command the attorney general, he said, adding: “Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.”Musk has called for the impeachment of judges he accuses of blocking his sweeping cuts to the federal workforce and government programs.”If ANY judge ANYWHERE can block EVERY Presidential order EVERYWHERE, we do NOT have democracy, we have TYRANNY of the JUDICIARY,” the billionaire said in a post on X.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has also weighed in.”The real constitutional crisis is taking place within our judicial branch,” Leavitt said, accusing judges in “liberal districts” of “abusing their power to unilaterally block President Trump’s basic executive authority.”Leavitt’s comments are in line with a conservative legal doctrine known as the “unitary executive theory” under which the president holds the sole authority over the executive branch.The theory could meet its ultimate test in the Supreme Court, where conservatives hold a 6-3 majority.- ‘Power grab’ -Senator Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, accused Trump and Musk of “pursuing a power grab that — if left unchecked — will leave the federal courts impotent and Congress a museum piece.”Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, said a constitutional crisis occurs when one of the three co-equal branches of government — the legislature, the executive and the judiciary — attempts to exercise the power of another branch.The United States has faced constitutional crises before, most notably when southern states seceded from the Union, precipitating the 1861-65 Civil War.Another was when Jackson, America’s seventh president, defied the Supreme Court order to stop the military from removing members of the Cherokee Nation from their land in Georgia.Steven Schwinn, a law professor at the University of Illinois Chicago, said there is no universally accepted definition of a constitutional crisis.”Some think we’re already in one,” Schwinn said. “Others say it’s if and when the president openly defies the Supreme Court.”I think we’re fast approaching a crisis with the administration seemingly openly defying court orders to re-start USAID funding,” he said.- ‘Dangerous suggestions’ -Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts warned of the danger of ignoring court rulings in a year-end letter in December that may prove to be even more prescient than he intended at the time.”Elected officials from across the political spectrum have raised the specter of open disregard for federal court rulings,” Roberts wrote. “These dangerous suggestions, however sporadic, must be soundly rejected.”The conservative chief justice noted that every administration suffers court defeats — sometimes in cases with major ramifications for executive or legislative power.”Nevertheless, for the past several decades, the decisions of the courts, popular or not, have been followed,” he said.What happens next is anybody’s guess.The courts do have some tools at their disposal if their orders are being defied, Tobias said, including civil and criminal contempt, possible fines and threats of imprisonment.At the end of the day, however, “the courts rely on the good-faith compliance of other constitutional actors with the rule of law,” Schwinn said.”If there’s no such good-faith compliance, there’s little the courts can do.”

Five former US defense secretaries on Thursday addressed a letter to lawmakers denouncing as “reckless” the recent firings of senior Pentagon officials by President Donald Trump.Trump this month launched a sweeping shakeup of the US Defense Department, firing top officers and moving to lay off thousands of civilian workers, pushing the Pentagon into the political spotlight.Democrats have accused Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of seeking to politicize the military and ensure it is led by people personally loyal to the president. In the letter, the ex-defense secretaries, who served under both Republican and Democratic administrations, added their voices to the condemnation, saying they were “deeply alarmed” by the firings. “We write to urge the U.S. Congress to hold Mr. Trump to account for these reckless actions and to exercise fully its Constitutional oversight responsibilities,” the letter said. The letter was signed by the most recent defense chief under Trump’s Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, Lloyd Austin, as well as William Perry, Chuck Hagel, Leon Panetta and James Mattis, who served in Trump’s first administration. “Mr. Trump’s dismissals raise troubling questions about the administration’s desire to politicize the military and to remove legal constraints on the President’s power,” the five men wrote. “President Trump’s actions undermine our all-volunteer force and weaken our national security.” Remaining above the political fray is a core principle for the US armed forces, with troops even barred from engaging in some types of political activity to maintain the military’s neutrality. Trump administration officials have defended the firings, with Hegseth insisting the president is simply choosing the leaders he wants, saying, “Nothing about this is unprecedented.” No accusations of misconduct have been made against the recently removed officials, including top officer General Charles “CQ” Brown, who was less than two years into his four-year term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Since taking office in late January for his second term, Trump has instigated rapid, broad cuts to US federal agencies. The Defense Department — the largest employer in the United States — said last week it would soon start cutting its civilian workforce by at least five percent.

A list of 29 suspects extradited to the United States on Thursday reads like a “Who’s Who” of Mexico’s imprisoned drug lords. Here are three of the most notorious cartel kingpins who were handed over:- Rafael Caro Quintero -The biggest prize was without doubt Rafael Caro Quintero, who has been wanted by the United States for decades over the kidnap, torture and murder of Drug Enforcement Administration special agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in 1985.The 72-year-old “Narco of Narcos,” who has always denied he was behind the killing, was on the FBI’s list of 10 most-wanted fugitives until he was captured in Mexico in 2022.There was a $20 million reward for information leading to his arrest — the most Washington has ever offered for a Mexican drug trafficker.His handover was an “extremely personal” moment for the entire DEA, the agency’s acting administrator Derek S. Maltz said.Caro Quintero had already been arrested in 1985, tried in Mexico and sentenced to 40 years in prison for Camarena’s murder.But in 2013, a Mexican court ordered his release on a legal technicality after he served 28 years, a move that angered US authorities.By the time Mexico’s Supreme Court overturned the decision, Caro Quintero had already gone into hiding.Caro Quintero is said to have begun growing marijuana at the age of 14.He went on to co-found the now-defunct Guadalajara cartel — which did business with the late Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar — before running an arm of the infamous Sinaloa cartel.Reputed to have had a weakness for jewelry and fine clothing, he cited his impoverished childhood to justify his actions.”I was an orphan, my father died, I was 14 years old and I had to feed my brothers, that’s how it all started,” he told Proceso magazine in a 2016 interview.- Miguel Angel Trevino Morales -As head of the Zetas drug cartel, Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, alias “Z-40,” led one of Mexico’s most powerful and feared organized crime groups until its collapse.The group was founded by deserters from the Mexican special forces known for their brutality.Originally, they acted as the armed enforcers of the Gulf Cartel, but the two groups split in 2010, and the Zetas became a major drug trafficking organization in their own right.The split sparked brutal turf wars in the north of the country.At the time of his arrest in 2013, officials described Trevino Morales, now 54, as a brutal killer who liked to “stew” his enemies by plunging them in containers of oil and fuel that he would set on fire.The US government had offered $5 million for information leading to his capture.- Omar Trevino Morales -Omar Trevino Morales, alias “Z-42,” allegedly took over the Zetas after his older brother Miguel Angel was captured by marines in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas in July 2013.He was considered “one of the most dangerous and bloodthirsty criminals in Mexico,” Tomas Zeron, the investigations chief at the attorney general’s office, said at the time.In 2010, Omar Trevino Morales told an informant that he had killed more than 1,000 people while his brother Miguel had killed 2,000, according to an affidavit filed in a US court for a case involving another Trevino brother in Texas.Like his brother, he had a $5 million US bounty for information leading to his arrest.Now 51, he was caught in 2015 by Mexican police and soldiers in an upper-class suburb of the northern industrial city of Monterrey.Washington accuses the two brothers of being “personally responsible” for committing dozens of murders and for directing killings, kidnappings and torture.

Hundreds of scientists and experts have been fired from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a leading US agency responsible for weather forecasting, climate analysis, marine conservation and more, a Democratic lawmaker said Thursday.The cuts come as Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency enacts sweeping reductions to the federal workforce — moves that critics argue may exceed legal authority.NOAA has been a prime target for conservative ideologues behind Project 2025, a blueprint for governing that President Donald Trump’s new administration appears to be following. The plan, developed by the Heritage Foundation, describes NOAA as one of the “main drivers of the climate change alarm industry” and calls for dismantling the agency. It also seeks to privatize the National Weather Service, leaving weather forecasting in the hands of companies like AccuWeather.”Hundreds of scientists and experts at NOAA just received the news every federal worker has been dreading,” Congressman Jared Huffman of California wrote in a statement.”Musk’s sham mission is bringing vital programs to a screeching halt. People nationwide depend on NOAA for free, accurate forecasts, severe weather alerts, and emergency information,” added Huffman, who is the second most powerful member of the House Natural Resources Committee.”Purging the government of scientists, experts, and career civil servants and slashing fundamental programs will cost lives.”A NOAA spokesman said the agency would not comment on internal personnel matters.”We continue to provide weather information, forecasts and warnings pursuant to our public safety mission,” Theo Stein, the spokesman, told AFP.Environmental advocates expressed concern at the move.”Trump’s mass firings at NOAA are an act of sabotage aimed at one of our most important federal agencies,” said Miyoko Sakashita, the Center for Biological Diversity’s oceans director.She added that gutting the agency “will hamstring essential lifesaving programs that forecast storms, ensure ocean safety, and prevent the extinction of whales and sea otters.”Trump has reappointed meteorologist Neil Jacobs to lead NOAA, despite his role in the “Sharpiegate” scandal during Trump’s first term. Jacobs, who led the agency from 2018 to 2021, was officially censured for bowing to political pressure and misleading the public about a hurricane forecast.The controversy erupted in 2019 when Trump falsely claimed Hurricane Dorian would hit Alabama. After the National Weather Service corrected him, Trump doubled down, displaying a doctored forecast map altered with a Sharpie. NOAA later issued an unsigned statement backing Trump, sparking backlash. Official investigations castigated Jacobs for his involvement in the statement.

The two films could hardly be more different: a raucous, rip-roaring indie about a sex worker, and an elegant, big-studio drama set in the Vatican.But “Anora” and “Conclave” appear to be locked in a tight two-horse race to win best picture at the Oscars on Sunday.With a twisty awards season rocked by Los Angeles wildfires and a racist tweet scandal reaching its climax, the battle for Hollywood’s ultimate prize is too close to call.”I don’t think anyone can honestly tell you,” said The Hollywood Reporter’s awards expert Scott Feinberg.”Both sides are feeling more nervous than confident… that should be an indicator that this is really a nail-biter,” he told AFP.Sean Baker’s “Anora” — about a New York exotic dancer who weds a wealthy Russian playboy, only to learn that her dream marriage is a nightmare illusion — is the year’s most awarded film to date.The low-budget indie won the Cannes festival’s Palme d’Or last May, and has accrued top prizes from Hollywood directors, producers, writers and critics.But “Conclave” — a film about the secretive and cutthroat election of a new Catholic leader, lent an uncanny timeliness by the real-life Pope Francis’s ailing health — appears to have won over many late voters.Released by NBCUniversal’s prestige label Focus Features, with an impeccable A-list cast led by Ralph Fiennes, it earned top honors from Britain’s BAFTAs, and the Hollywood actors’ SAG Award for best cast.Almost every surprise best picture Oscar winner in recent times — from “Shakespeare in Love” and “Crash” to “Parasite” and “CODA” — first won the top SAG prize, said Feinberg.”I personally put ‘Conclave’… it’s just more of a traditional, classic ‘best picture’ film,” one Oscars voter told AFP.The voter, anonymous because Academy members cannot reveal their picks, also expressed admiration for “The Brutalist,” a saga about a Hungarian Jewish architect making a new life in the post-WWII United States.- Oscar records -Adrien Brody, who plays the titular gifted architect and Holocaust survivor in “The Brutalist,” has been the presumed favorite to win best actor for months. Brody has won the prize previously, for 2002’s “The Pianist.” If he prevails again, he’d join an elite club of double winners including Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson.But Timothee Chalamet earned wide admiration for his pitch-perfect performance as a sardonic young Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown,” won the Screen Actors Guild Award over Brody, and could prove a spoiler.At just 29, he arguably has the most star power of any of this year’s nominees, and would beat Brody’s record as the category’s youngest-ever winner.Brody is “still the safer pick,” said Feinberg — assuming enough Academy voters made it through his film’s three-and-a-half-hour runtime.Several fellow Academy members “were upset that they were locked in a room for that amount of time,” said the Oscars voter.- ‘Comeback story’ -There could be an even younger winner on the actress side, if a groundswell of support for “Anora” carries its star Mikey Madison, 25, to the Oscars stage.But she will have to get past Demi Moore, the 1990s megastar who had enjoyed a sparkling career renaissance thanks to gory body horror flick “The Substance.””Hollywood loves a comeback story,” said the Oscars voter.It seems that neither woman need fear their fellow nominee Karla Sofia Gascon, of musical narco-thriller “Emilia Perez.”Gascon, the first openly trans acting nominee, saw her hopes collapse after years-old racist tweets about Islam, China and American George Floyd, a Black man who died at the hands of US police in 2020, went viral.The controversy also sunk Netflix’s chance of its first best picture win, though co-star Zoe Saldana remains the favorite to win for best supporting actress.Best supporting actor appears to be similarly locked. Kieran Culkin has won almost everything going this year for his portrayal of a charismatic but troubled cousin on an ancestral road trip through Poland in “A Real Pain.”- ‘Wicked’ stars -The ceremony itself, hosted by Conan O’Brien on his Oscars debut, is expected to be an emotional affair.It will honor firefighters who battled blazes that killed at least 29 people and devastated Los Angeles in January.Hoping to capitalize on a recent ratings uptick — last year’s gala featured a memorable “Barbie”-themed musical showstopper — producers have enlisted “Wicked” stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo to perform.For the first time, the gala will stream live on Hulu, as well as on US network ABC, and in more than 200 territories worldwide.The 97th Oscars begin Sunday at 4:00 pm (0000 GMT Monday).

Mexico on Thursday extradited some of its most notorious imprisoned drug lords to the United States in a bid to avert sweeping tariffs, including a cartel kingpin wanted for decades over the murder of a US undercover agent.Rafael Caro Quintero, who allegedly ordered the kidnap, torture and killing of DEA special agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in the 1980s, and several other top gang figures were among 29 suspects handed over.Caro Quintero was on the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s list of 10 most-wanted fugitives until his capture in 2022. If convicted, he and several others could face the death penalty, the US Department of Justice said, adding that prosecutors would also consider terrorism charges.The surprise extraditions come as Mexico scrambles to seal a deal with Washington to avoid being hit with trade duties that Trump has linked to illegal migration and drug flows.Trump has designated eight Latin American drug trafficking organizations — including six Mexican cartels — terrorist organizations.”As President Trump has made clear, cartels are terrorist groups, and this Department of Justice is devoted to destroying cartels and transnational gangs,” US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement.”We will prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law in honor of the brave law enforcement agents who have dedicated their careers — and in some cases, given their lives — to protect innocent people from the scourge of violent cartels,” she added.The handover of so many suspects at the same time was “historic,” Mike Vigil, a former chief of international operations at the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), told AFP.In the past, Mexico would extradite only a few suspects at once, he said, adding: “They’re certainly hoping that it will have a positive impact on the tariff negotiations.”The DEA was “celebrating” Caro Quintero’s extradition in particular, he said.DEA acting administrator Derek S. Maltz called it an “extremely personal” moment for the entire agency.The suspects also included the former leaders of the ultra-violent Zetas cartel, brothers Omar and Miguel Angel Trevino Morales.Former Juarez cartel boss Vicente Carrillo and a brother of Nemesio Oseguera, head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico’s most powerful criminal organizations, were also on the list.- ‘National security threat’ -The announcement came as a high-level Mexican delegation, including the foreign, defense and security ministers, visited Washington for talks with counterparts, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.The two countries agreed to take an unspecified “series of coordinated actions” to tackle drug trafficking, the Mexican government said.The aim was to reduce fentanyl deaths as well as the illegal trafficking of firearms, it said.Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has pledged to collaborate with Washington, while rejecting any “invasion” of her country’s sovereignty.She has repeatedly expressed optimism that tariffs between the two countries can be avoided, and said Thursday she hoped to speak to Trump to seal a deal.Shortly after taking office, Trump announced duties of up to 25 percent on Mexican imports, citing illegal immigration and the flow of fentanyl.He issued a last-minute suspension until March 4 after Sheinbaum agreed to deploy 10,000 more troops to the Mexico-US border to tackle illegal migration and drug smuggling.Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in the White House in January saying that the cartels “constitute a national security threat beyond that posed by traditional organized crime.”The move has raised speculation about possible military action against the cartels — something that Sheinbaum has said she would oppose.Last week, Sheinbaum confirmed that the United States had been operating drones spying on Mexican cartels as part of a collaboration that has existed for years.Mexican authorities have recently announced a series of major drug seizures and the arrest of two prominent members of the Sinaloa Cartel, which was among the groups designated terrorist organizations by Trump.

Meta on Thursday said it had laid off 20 workers for leaking information to the media, as the social media giant faces pressure over the recent political shift of its boss Mark Zuckerberg towards US President Donald Trump.”We tell employees when they join the company, and we offer periodic reminders, that it is against our policies to leak internal information, no matter the intent,” a Meta spokesperson said, confirming a story first reported in The Verge.”We recently conducted an investigation that resulted in roughly 20 employees being terminated for sharing confidential information outside the company, and we expect there will be more,” the company added. “We take this seriously, and will continue to take action when we identify leaks.”The round of firings came following a recent series of reports based on Zuckerberg’s meetings with employees.In one meeting, first reported by The Verge, Zuckerberg told employees he would no longer be forthcoming with information because “we try to be really open and then everything I say leaks. It sucks.”He also warned them to “buckle up” for the coming year and said that Meta would be a productive partner with the White House.Tech leaders have broadly fallen in line around Trump since he won the election in November, with Zuckerberg making a particular turn towards the Republican since his return to office.Zuckerberg has multiplied his advances towards Trump, who last summer threatened the tech tycoon with life imprisonment after Meta excluded the president from Facebook in January 2021 for encouraging the assault on the Capitol.The CEO and founder has dined with the Republican on several occasions, donated to the president’s inauguration fund, eased up on content moderation, and ended Facebook’s US fact-checking program in an effort to draw closer to the new Republican leadership in Washington.His longtime political affairs boss was also replaced by a prominent Republican, and he named Trump ally Dana White to his board after the US election.The measures align with the conservative views of the president and his allies, as well as masculinist entertainers and personalities like Elon Musk.On the Joe Rogan podcast, Zuckerberg complained that “a lot of the corporate world is pretty culturally neutered” and that embracing masculine energy “is good.”