After Chihuahua CIA controversy, Querétaro police academy raises new questions about US involvement at state level

Querétaro Governor Mauricio Kuri informed Foreign Affairs Minister Roberto Velasco about a visit by U.S. Ambassador Ronald Johnson to the state on October 2nd. Kuri did not disclose that Johnson was set to lay the cornerstone for a new International Police Training Academy. The existence of Kuri's letter was revealed after President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged her government's limited knowledge of the project during her Monday press conference.

She questioned why the Querétaro government did not invite the Mexican military, the federal Security Cabinet, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the cornerstone-laying ceremony.

After the letter was leaked, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement acknowledging its receipt while emphasizing that the International Police Training Academy, as a project involving security cooperation with a foreign government, requires prior federal approval. President Sheinbaum later stated that a federal security group approved nine cooperation projects between Querétaro and U.S. law enforcement agencies between December 2021 and October 2026, but the academy was not among them.

The collaboration between the U.S. and Querétaro on a police training academy is akin to the alleged involvement of the CIA in a drug lab raid in Chihuahua in April, as both instances occurred in states governed by the opposition National Action Party (PAN). The U.S. government has not officially approved these collaborations, similar to the CIA's unauthorized participation in the Chihuahua operation.

Despite rejecting U.S. meddling, Sheinbaum's government has shown willingness to cooperate, even if there are tensions in the security relationship.