At least 21 persons have been reportedly killed in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas as supremacy wars between the local Gulf Cartel and its chief rival, the Zetas intensifies.

This is even as another confrontation between an armed group and military forces in Nueva Ciudad Guerrero, also in Tamaulipas on Thursday morning left five people dead and one military officer injured.

Officials in the notoriously violent border state said they were investigating the incident which took place in Ciudad Miguel Aleman after they discovered the bodies, seventeen of which were burned.

One body found was wearing  a baseball cap bearing the letters and logo of the Gulf Cartel while others wore the  bullet-proof vests with the same insignia.

The remains of the 21 gang members killed in the clashes which have been a key source of bloodshed in recent years were found just over the river close to where United States president, Donald Trump  visited on Thursday to seek support for his proposed plan to build a border wall.

Trump visited McAllen, Texas which is located about 90 kilometres from Ciudad Miguel Aleman where he threatened to use emergency powers to bypass Congress and get billions of dollars to pay for the wall.

A spokesman for state police, Luis Rodriguez said in a statement that it appeared gunmen from the Gulf Cartel had clashed with members of the Northeast Cartel, a violent group which split from the Zetas.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in Mexico during years of fighting between security forces and cartels warring over drug trafficking, extortion rackets and the exploitation of migrants.