MEXICO CITY: Mexico said Thursday that it had reached an agreement with the United States to settle a controversial water debt, after protests by farmers near the border turned violent.

The government has been caught between US pressure to meet an October 24 deadline under a water-sharing treaty and public opposition in Chihuahua state, where a demonstrator was killed. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said his country would fulfil its obligations in return for a commitment from the United States to provide Mexico with water in the event of shortages.