Mexico City, May 20 (AP) Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador upped the pressure on the United States Wednesday to end aid payments to an anti-corruption group.

Lopez Obrador claims that the US payments are tantamount to interfering in Mexico's internal affairs and funding the opposition to his government.

“It would be like the Mexican Embassy in the United States giving money to the opposition," the president said.

“They should not be giving money any more."

In early May, just before an online meeting with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Lopez Obrador said Mexico had filed a diplomatic note with the U.S. Embassy on the issue.

On Wednesday, he said “there is a commitment by the U.S. government to review this,” but added “they are taking a long time, I say respectfully."

“Let's hope that by this week they stop these payments,” Lopez Obrador said. “This money is being used to campaign against us.”

He said it was “urgent” that the US Agency for International Development stop payments by this week, before the June 6 midterm elections.

The State Department said it does not comment on diplomatic correspondence.

Lopez Obrador has long attacked nongovernmental organizations like Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity, which he says has received about USD 2.5 million in US money.

He claims the group is aligned with the opposition, though it says it simply monitors government spending and programs for abuses. It was founded three years before Lopez Obrador took office and has criticized previous governments and other parties. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)