MEXICO CITY, Sept. 2 — President Felipe Calderón harshly criticized the United States government on Sunday for the recent crackdown on illegal immigrants, saying it has led to the persecution of immigrant workers without visas.

The Bush administration has stepped up raids on factories and farms suspected of hiring illegal workers, imposing heavy fines and deporting a record number of illegal immigrants in 2006. The United States Congress this summer failed to approve proposed legislation to revamp immigration laws to make it easier for Mexican immigrants to gain citizenship or temporary work visas, disappointing the Calderón administration.

“In the name of the government of Mexico, I again issue an energetic protest against the unilateral measures taken by the Congress and the United States government that exacerbate the persecution and the vexing treatment against undocumented Mexican workers,” Mr. Calderón said in his annual formal address to the nation.

“The insensitivity shown toward those who have contributed to the economy and the United States society has been an inducement to redouble the struggle to recognize the enormous contribution to the economy of both countries and to defend their rights.”

As he has in the past, Mr. Calderón called on the United States Congress to pass changes to immigration law that would grant legal status to about 12 million Mexicans living and working illegally in the United States. He also reiterated his strong opposition to plans to build more fences and other barriers along much of the southern border. The assembled business executives and dignitaries gave him a standing ovation.

Criticizing the United States for its treatment of illegal Mexican immigrants has become routine for most Mexican politicians, including Mr. Calderón. Because the immigrants send home about $20 billion a year and because the yearly migration of more than 400,000 people relieves Mexico of masses of the poor, the government here has little incentive either to stem the migration northward or to support stricter measures making it harder for Mexicans to cross the border.