A tentative plan for US President Donald Trump to host his Mexican counterpart in Washington has been put on hold, the White House confirmed on Saturday.
Trump and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto have agreed that now is not the right time for Pena Nieto to make his first visit since Trump took office more than a year ago, according to a White House official who insisted on anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
US and Mexican officials would continue to talk and work together, the official said.
The Washington Post cited US and Mexican officials in reporting late on Saturday that the plan was shelved last week after a testy telephone call between the leaders ended in an impasse over the wall Trump has pledged to build on the US-Mexico border to stem the flow of immigrants and drugs.
Trump promised the wall throughout his presidential campaign. Mexico regards the idea of a border wall as an insult and insists it will not pay.
Trump and Pena Nieto spoke on Tuesday, the White House said in a statement at the time.
Trump offered condolences after a military helicopter carrying officials assessing earthquake damage crashed in Oaxaca state, killing 13 people, and Pena Nieto offered condolences over the Florida high school shooting that left 17 people dead.
The statement said Trump underscored his commitment to expanding cooperation with Mexico on security, trade, and immigration, but did not mention a possible visit by Pena Nieto.
Pena Nieto scrapped a planned trip to meet Trump at the White House shortly after Trump took office in January last year.
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