Mexico City, December 13 – Mexico announced an agreement with the United States to strengthen water management in the Rio Bravo basin and emphasized that it did not violate any bilateral treaty on the matter.
A joint statement from both nations indicates that, as part of the understanding, this Latin American country intends to release 249.163 million cubic meters of water to the United States, with deliveries starting the week of December 15.
The Water Treaty, signed on February 3, 1944, regulates the relationship between the two parties to jointly manage the resource of international rivers and establishes the basis for volume distribution, mainly concerning the Colorado and the Bravo rivers.
Mexico, hit by an unprecedented drought in recent years, must deliver an agreed portion of water from the second river to the United States, and in exchange, this Latin American country also receives water from the first river from its northern neighbor.
The document released this Friday adds that a series of actions has been reviewed to fulfill the obligations of the pact, "including the timely repayment of the exceptional deficit from the previous water cycle."
Both governments stated they are in negotiations and aim to finalize the plan by January 31, 2026.
They also agreed on the importance of continuing to work cooperatively in this field and noted that, in case of non-compliance, each country can act sovereignly in accordance with its national interests, subject to its international obligations under the Treaty.
Mexico’s Foreign Ministry recalled this Friday that, during a period marked by an extraordinary drought affecting users in both countries, the Latin American nation has made additional deliveries of the resource to its northern neighbor.
This, the Secretariat of Foreign Relations emphasized, "always within the framework of the Treaty, hydrological availability, and the operational and infrastructural limits of the region, without affecting water for human consumption and agricultural production in the border area."
It pointed out that the actions taken over the past year demonstrate that Mexico complies based on the actual availability of the resource.
The Latin American country reiterated its willingness to collaborate constructively with the United States without harming the interests of its people and nation, to ensure a mutually beneficial implementation in accordance with the stipulations of the 1944 agreement.
Following the threat from the U.S. president, Donald Trump, to increase tariffs on Mexico by five percent if the water delivery was not met, President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed confidence on Tuesday in reaching an agreement, but without harming human and agricultural consumption in her country.
