Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum designated Roberto Velasco as the country’s new foreign minister on April 2, according to the president’s office, a personnel change taking place during a period of strained and high-stakes relations with the United States. Sheinbaum’s administration named Velasco, currently the foreign ministry’s subsecretary for North America, as the person who will lead Mexico’s diplomacy.
The change also follows the decision by the previous foreign minister, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, to request that he be allowed to step down for health reasons, the president’s office said on social platform X. De la Fuente had served as foreign minister since October 2024, and the transition was carried out during a moment when U.S.-Mexico ties are being reshaped by trade talks and security policy priorities.
Velasco, 38, is a lawyer who holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Chicago, according to the appointment announcement. The foreign ministry said he has worked on Mexico’s relations with the United States and Canada for roughly six years, first as North America general director and later as subsecretary, roles that placed him close to negotiations on issues including security, migration, the economy, the border and shared waters management.
The announcement also said Velasco stepped in for De la Fuente for several weeks after a surgery last year. It added that his eventual confirmation will depend on the Mexican Senate, which must ratify the appointment.
The appointment comes after De la Fuente built a profile for discretion and negotiation skills, the announcement said. It described him as accompanying Sheinbaum throughout the transition period after she took office, receiving envoys from then-U.S. President Joe Biden, and helping prepare Mexico’s U.S. consular network for deportations that Trump announced.
The president’s office said that when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, De la Fuente became a key figure in talks with the administration, maintaining what the announcement characterized as a low profile and an approach aligned with Sheinbaum’s caution in the face of Trump’s social media posts. It also said De la Fuente hosted U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Mexico City in September.
Velasco is expected to lead Mexican diplomacy while negotiations proceed to revise the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement, the appointment announcement said. It also pointed to the Trump administration’s continued pressure in its fight against drug cartels, noting Trump’s stated willingness to use military operations against people he considers enemies, including Mexico’s ally Cuba.
In remarks published in the AP report, Arturo Sarukhan, Mexico’s former ambassador to the United States, said the reshuffle in the foreign ministry was “long overdue,” but he declined to comment on Velasco specifically and wished him luck. The appointment announcement also said Velasco previously served as spokesperson for Marcelo Ebrard, who was Mexico’s foreign minister during the first part of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration and is now economy secretary.