As US President Donald Trump began his second term in January, Mexico loomed large in his crosshairs.
Thousands of migrants a month were crossing the US border illegally from Mexico. Mexican cartels were smuggling huge quantities of the lethal drug fentanyl into American cities. And the country had elected a leftwing nationalist who vowed to stand up to the Americans — just the kind of politician to raise Trump’s hackles.
Yet as Claudia Sheinbaum completes a year in office, Mexico’s first female president has surprised many. Instead of confronting Trump, she has embraced dialogue — 14 telephone conversations so far — and won concessions which have helped the economy dodge recession.