Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met with Mexico’s foreign minister on Wednesday and will visit Mexico City, the White House announced.
The meeting with Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray in Washington, D.C., came one week after Tillerson, the former CEO of Exxon Mobil, was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in.
"They had a constructive conversation on a range of U.S.-Mexico collaboration including law enforcement, migration, and security," acting State Department spokesperson Mark Toner said in a statement.
Related: Trump, Mexico's President Agree to End Tiff Over Border Wall
Trump's executive order on construction of a wall on the U.S. southern border with Mexico, and the president’s claim that Mexico would pay for it, has inflamed tensions between the two nations.
Trump has also taken a hard line on illegal immigration and in the past pledged to deport all of those in the country illegally, although in November he seemed to soften his stance and said he would focus on those with criminal convictions. Another order Trump has signed since taking office significantly boosts the U.S. Border Patrol.
In a video released by Mexico’s foreign ministry, Videgaray described the meeting as "a cordial conversation about coordination on migration and security." He said "we spoke about the need for Mexican migrants to be treated with respect and due process regardless of the deportations."
"We told the secretary that we will be increasing support for Mexican migrants in our consulates in the U.S.,” Videgaray said.
Related: Mexican Lawmakers Grapple With Trump, and What Comes Next
A date for Tillerson's trip to Mexico was not announced.
Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto canceled a planned trip to the U.S. last month over Trump’s rhetoric. The two leaders later spoke on a prearranged phone call and "agreed at this point not to speak publicly about this controversial issue," Mexico’s government said at the time.
When asked about Peña Nieto possibly rescheduling his visit to Washington, Videgaray said "not for now."
Some other Mexican politicians aren't waiting on Trump or Peña Nieto, and planned their own visits to the U.S. to garner support for Mexico.
Leftist leader Andrés Manuel López Obrador is holding a rally in California this weekend and Mexican Senator Armando Rios Piter said he will meet with officials in Arizona on Friday.
"In a context of enormous misinformation, like the one Mr. Trump has created, we want to establish alliances with congressmen and senators who can have an impact in Washington", Rios Piter told NBC News.
