Eagle Pass, Texas - While on a tour of the southern border, Vice President JD Vance announced that the Trump administration intends to finish the US-Mexico border wall by 2029 at the latest.

Vance was joined at the southern border by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who accompanied him on a day trip meant to highlight the Trump administration's so-called "border security" efforts.

During Trump's first term, he began the construction of a border wall between Mexico and the US. About 450 miles were built before President Joe Biden entered office in 2021 and suspended plans to build an additional 300 miles of wall.

The Biden administration later announced steps to fast-track border wall construction by waiving dozens of environmental laws.

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"I think the president's hope is that by the end of the term we build the entire border wall," Vance said during a press conference with Hegseth and Gabbard. "And of course that's the physical structure, the border wall itself, but we even heard today, there are so many good technological tools."

Vance went on to tout artificial intelligence and high-quality cameras as vital for detecting individuals who are going to attempt a border crossing before they even arrive at the border itself.

"We're using artificial intelligence to make us better at the job of border enforcement, but we've got to make sure that technology is deployed across the entire American southern border," he said.

Vance promised increased border protections to protect border communities from migrants coming into the US, many of which he claimed have violent criminal histories – though he provided no evidence to substantiate that assertion.

Days earlier, the Trump administration had imposed 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, sparking particularly harsh criticism from Ottawa.

"What the president says is we need a sustained commitment from the government of Mexico to take the job of border security seriously," Vance said. "Fentanyl is the single-largest cause of death among young Americans."

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Vance said the precursors of fentanyl are sent from China for manufacturing in Mexico, before getting shipped across the US border.

"We want to see fewer Americans dying of these terrible fentanyl overdoses. We're going to apply as much leverage as possible to the Mexican government."

During the visit, Vance held a roundtable meeting with Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales, whose district spans much of the border with Mexico.

"We need new laws to secure the border," Vance said in the meeting. "We needed a new president. And thank God we have that."