U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening to install a 5% tariff on imports from Mexico due to the country’s alleged failure to comply with a treaty governing the flow of water between the two nations.
Trump said in a Truth Social post Monday that Mexico has fallen short of its obligations under the 1944 Water Treaty by 800,000 acre-feet of water and demanded the country release at least 200,000 acre-feet of water by the end of the year and the remaining “soon after.”
“As of now, Mexico is not responding, and it is very unfair to our U.S. Farmers who deserve this much needed water,” Trump said. “That is why I have authorized documentation to impose a 5% Tariff on Mexico if this water isn’t released, IMMEDIATELY.”
The 1944 U.S.-Mexico Water Treaty governs the flow of water between the networks of the Colorado River and the Rio Grande. As part of the agreement, the U.S. must allow 1.5 million acre-feet of water from the Colorado River and tributaries to flow into Mexico annually across five-year cycles. In exchange, Mexico is tasked with releasing 350,000 acre-feet of water per year from the Rio Grande and tributaries over the same time increments.
Mexico has delivered just over 800,000 acre-feet of water to the U.S. during the most recent five-year cycle, which ended in October, per the International Boundary and Water Commission. That total falls short of the combined 1.75 million acre-feet target for each cycle.
Trump’s latest tariff threat muddies the waters of an already complicated year in trade relations between the U.S. and Mexico.
The president met with Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney last week ahead of the 2026 World Cup Final Draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. During the half-hour meeting, the three leaders primarily discussed trade, Trump told reporters Sunday.
The meeting came as the three North American trading partners eye the pending review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement next summer.
The U.S. is currently leveling a 25% tariff on imports from Mexico, although Trump has installed temporary exemption for goods compliant with the USMCA. Although the exemption was scheduled to run out Nov. 1, Sheinbaum indicated the same week that it may be further extended as the two countries continued negotiations addressing non-tariff trade barriers.
On Monday, Trump did not share details of how the proposed 5% additional levy would interact with current tariffs on goods from Mexico.
