Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Wednesday backtracked further on a Washington summit he had proposed with U.S. President Donald Trump for the July 1 launch of the USMCA trade deal, although he did not totally rule it out.

"Time is against us and it's not going to be possible now," Lopez Obrador told reporters, although he added, "I don't rule it out yet, we must wait.”

Lopez Obrador first suggested several months ago he would meet Trump. Last week, he revived the idea but, with the country now a coronavirus epicenter, he suggested a phone call as an alternative.

However, his office said on Tuesday the two sides were still considering whether an encounter would be possible. Mexican health authorities have forecast infections will peak this week.

"Everything depends on the situation of the pandemic," presidential spokesman Jesus Ramirez said.

The idea of meeting Trump in the heat of his re-election campaign has been greeted with surprise in Mexico, where the U.S. president is almost universally unpopular for his verbal attacks on Mexicans and decision to build a border wall.

A summit in Washington would be Lopez Obrador's first overseas trip since becoming president.