Zimmermann Telegram - Mexican Response

Mexican Response

The Telegram was part of a German effort to distract the U.S. and divert American aid going to the Triple Entente. Germany had long sought to incite a war between Mexico and the U.S., which would have tied down American forces and slowed the export of American arms.

Mexican President Venustiano Carranza assigned a general to assess the feasibility of a Mexican takeover of their former territories. The general concluded that it would not be possible or even desirable for the following reasons:

• Attempting to re-take the former territories would mean unavoidable war with the much stronger U.S.
• Germany's promises of "generous financial support" were empty. Mexico could not buy arms, ammunition, or other war supplies, because the U.S. was the only sizable arms manufacturer in the Americas. The British Royal Navy controlled the Atlantic sea lanes, so Germany could not be counted on to supply Mexico with war supplies directly.
• Even if Mexico had the military means to win the conflict with the U.S. and re-take the area in question, Mexico would have had severe difficulty accommodating and/or pacifying the large, well-armed, English-speaking population.
• Other foreign relations were at stake. Mexico had cooperated with the so-called ABC nations in South America to prevent a war with the U.S., generally improving relations all around. If Mexico were to enter war against the U.S. it would strain relations with those same ABC nations—who would later declare war on Germany.