Relations between the United States and Mexico have deteriorated sharply after DEA director Terry Cole testified before the US Senate that Mexican government officials have been complicit in drug trafficking, declaring that "narco traffickers and high-ranking government officials in Mexico have been in bed for years." The crisis deepened following US federal charges against the governor of the state of Sinaloa and nine other current or former Mexican officials for alleged ties to the powerful Sinaloa cartel, compounded by CNN reports that the CIA has been conducting covert operations — including facilitating the assassination of a cartel figure — inside Mexican territory without the knowledge of Mexico's federal government. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has firmly rejected both the corruption allegations and the CIA reports, insisting on Mexican sovereignty, though analysts warn her room to manoeuvre is limited given the two countries' deep economic ties and Washington's escalating pressure.