Donald Trump said he will travel to Mexico today to meet with that country’s President, hours before the Republican presidential nominee’s long-awaited speech on immigration and gains significance amid his rhetoric of “building a wall” on the border if elected.
“I have accepted the invitation of President Enrique Pena Nieto, of Mexico, and look very much forward to meeting him tomorrow,” Trump tweeted.
Soon after, the Mexican President tweeted that Trump has accepted his invitation.
Notably, Nieto has been highly critical of Trump’s plan to build a wall on the US-Mexico border.
The 70-year-old reality TV star, who has in the past called some Mexicans as drug dealers, “rapists” and other criminals, argues this would stop the flow of illegal immigrants coming into the US.
Nieto had invited Trump’s Democratic rival Hillary Clinton too for a meeting. “Both campaigns received the invitation on good terms”, the president’s office said in a statement.
“Trump, sensing an opportunity, decided over the weekend to accept the invitation and push for a visit this week, according to the people familiar with the discussions,” The Washington Post reported.
Trump’s meeting with the Mexican President would be his first formal interaction with a foreign head of state after he jumped into the electoral arena last year.
The development comes just hours ahead of the Republican presidential nominee’s much-anticipated Arizona speech on immigration.