Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday called on the United States to tighten firearms control following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

"It's something that needs to be done urgently," said Lopez Obrador, whose government blames firearms trafficking from its northern neighbor for fueling drug cartel-related violence.

The outgoing leftist urged US President Joe Biden and his predecessor and election rival Trump to sign a pledge to regulate weapon sales.

The United States was experiencing a "social decomposition" that must be tackled at its roots, Lopez Obrador, who is due to leave office on October 1, said at his daily news conference.

About a third of adults in the United States own a firearm and regulations on purchasing powerful, military-style rifles are lax.

In contrast, Mexico tightly controls weapons sales, making them practically impossible to obtain legally.

More than half a million weapons are trafficked into Mexico from the United States annually, according to the Mexican government, which has repeatedly urged Washington to curb the flows.

Mexico has filed two lawsuits in US courts against the firearms industry, which it accuses of negligent practices in connection with weapons smuggling.