Mexico agreed “in principle” to update an 18-year-old trade deal with the European Union on April 21. The agreement came in response to United States President Donald Trump’s push to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (nafta). Mexico fears a renegotiation will result in less revenue from selling to America, so it is beginning to look elsewhere for trade partners. Mexico’s strategic location just south of the U.S. means America’s rivals are eager to take advantage of the split.

President Trump’s promises to impose tariffs and oppose more companies moving south to Mexico have also driven the nation to reduce its dependence on the U.S.

“In less than two years, the EU and Mexico have delivered a deal fit for the economic and political challenges of the 21st century,” stated EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom. “Today’s agreement also sends a strong message to other partners that it is possible to modernize existing trade relations when both partners share a clear belief in the merits of openness, and of free and fair trade.”

The deal, originally established in 2000, has been expanded from including goods and machinery to also include finance, e-commerce and agriculture. The EU released a statement saying that the deal would almost completely guarantee tariff-free trade for all goods, as well as streamline other areas like pharmaceuticals and transport. It could also potentially cover farm products, services, investment and government procurement, as well as provisions regarding labor standards and environmental protection.

Politico reported that the negotiations are ongoing. Mexico is asking for greater EU flexibility in importing cars that use foreign parts, the use of EU dairy products in Mexican markets, and greater access to EU markets for Mexican beef. Meanwhile, Europe is pushing for its own preferred terms.

Mexico’s geographic location provides easy access to its northern neighbor, so reducing its dependence on trade with America is difficult. If Mexico does find an advantageous way to shut America out, it would severely damage the U.S. economy. America’s dominance of the Caribbean basin is essential for protecting U.S. trade and security.

Trumpet writer Richard Palmer addressed the dangers of a European-Mexico trade deal in his April 2017 article:

Europe has deep trade and cultural links with the region. As Europe unites, it will look to project great influence here. We can expect China to also grow its presence in this region.

The May 1962 Plain Truth warned that “the United States is going to be left out in the cold as two gigantic trade blocs, Europe and Latin America, mesh together and begin calling the shots in world commerce.”

One specific prophecy of these curses is found in Deuteronomy 28. Among the punishments upon modern-day America that this chapter lists for rebellion against God, verse 52 warns that foreign nations “shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the Lord thy God hath given thee.”

These “gates” include the vital sea-lanes by which America trades with other nations and imports goods that its people rely on every day. This is a specific prophecy that these sea-lanes will be cut off by foreign powers!

That scenario simply couldn’t happen without Latin America: It will entail an enemy or alliance of enemies closing the Panama Canal to American traffic and gaining naval and aerial superiority in the Caribbean.

Mexico is just part of this trend. Europe and China are deepening their inroads into Latin America. Cuba’s new president could open his island up to further European influence. Continue watching European trade and the economic and security dangers it poses to the U.S. For more background on what is prophesied for America’s crucial backyard, read Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry’s article “The Deadly Dangerous U.S.-Cuba Deal.”