Guest Column
The United States and Mexico: Partners on the Road to Prosperity
- By Antonio O. Garza
- United States Ambassador to Mexico
In any long-term and meaningful relationship, occasionally tense discussions are inevitable. In recent weeks, after several violent incidents along our shared border, I was criticized by some for my frank but, what I felt were, honest statements about our need for a safer and more secure border. However, even during challenging times in our relationship, I have never lost my optimism that Mexico and the United States can work together successfully to resolve the challenges that face both our countries in this unusually complex relationship.
On February 20, our two Presidents spoke on the phone to discuss the range of challenges facing our two nations. The Presidents discussed the immense importance of law enforcement cooperation between Mexico and the United States. President Bush also reiterated his commitment to comprehensive immigration reform in the United States. Additionally, they discussed appointing two single contacts, Mexican Secretary of Government Carlos Abascal and U.S. Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff, to take a leading role in the continued effort to stop violence in the border region through the coordination of our responses and efforts.
Very recently, we have made significant strides in our efforts to combat crime and arrest fugitives by working together. In the last several days, two dangerous fugitives wanted in the United States were arrested in Mexico thanks to the close cooperation of Mexico’s Federal Investigative Agency, the United States Marshals Service, the United States F.B.I., and several state law enforcement agencies in both countries.
These types of law enforcement successes will only increase as we continue to cooperate with one another—and our law enforcement leaders are committed to that result. Mexican Attorney General Daniel Cabeza de Vaca and his counterpart U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez are in almost constant contact, and just last week Mexico’s Secretary for Public Security Eduardo Medina Mora spoke to Robert Mueller, Director of the FBI, to discuss methods of better cooperation in law enforcement.
Mexico’s military of course has played a fundamental role in the fight against narco-trafficking in our two countries. Both the Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA), headed by General Gerardo Clemente Ricardo Vega García, and the Secretariat of the Navy (SEMAR), headed by Admiral Marco Antonio Peyrot, have continued devoting significant resources and manpower towards drug interdiction and eradication. Last year and this year thus far, the Mexican military has interdicted large quantities of illegal drugs. They have, likewise, provided key assistance in the arrest of several wanted narcotraffickers.
These recent efforts to cooperate and the February phone call between Presidents Fox and Bush are only the start of what will be a month of opportunities for increased bilateral dialogue and assistance. March 2006 will bring a wide array of prospects for resolution of many of the challenges we mutually face—and yet these very visible exchanges are only a small part of the everyday and constant interactions between the people of our two countries.
On March 2-4, key members of the U.S. and Mexican congresses will meet in Valle de Bravo at the 45th meeting of the U.S.-Mexico Interparliamentary Working Group. This annual meeting provides an excellent opportunity for lawmakers from each country to exchange views on the major issues in our bilateral relationship. Through meetings on these various topics, the legislators of each country are able to gain a better understanding of the positions of the other country and hopefully find common ground on matters such as immigration, health and the environment.
On March 3, Secretaries Chertoff and Abascal will meet in Brownsville, Texas to discuss border security. This very important meeting will provide both leaders with the opportunity to discuss methods of responding immediately to violence in our border region. I am hopeful the meeting will result in a clear plan for law enforcement coordination when narco-traffickers are trying to cross our border illegally, when U.S. border patrol agents are attacked while performing their duties, or when innocent citizens of either country are in danger.
On March 23 and 24, United States Trade Representative Robert Portman will meet Secretary Garcia de Alba and Canadian International Trade Minister David Emerson in Acapulco to develop new strategies to keep NAFTA the most successful trading partnership in the world. They will ensure that laws and standards in North America help our businesses answer the challenges from their competitors in Asia and Europe. They also will cooperate so that all of our citizens can share in the benefits that free trade brings to the hemisphere.
Simultaneously, on March 24, Secretary Rice and numerous cabinet-level secretaries from the U.S. and Mexico will meet in Washington at the 22nd Annual Binational Commission to discuss a range of ongoing collaborative efforts and programs. Our cabinet Secretaries will discuss education, the environment, energy, border security, law enforcement, counter-narcotics, migration and consular affairs—all with the goal of coordinating our efforts to better the lives of citizens on both sides of the border.
Finally, at the end of March, Presidents Bush and Fox, along with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, will gather in Mexico to advance the goals of the Security and Prosperity Partnership that the three governments formed in 2005. As part of our efforts to protect North America from external threats, to prevent and respond to threats within North America, and to streamline legitimate cross-border trade and travel in the region, the three leaders will discuss common border security strategies, a common approach to emergency response, and cooperation in energy, transportation, intelligence, financial services, technology and other areas.
Too many critics decry the differences between the U.S. and Mexico as proof that we are growing farther apart. These critics must understand that the U.S. and Mexico are partners in a complex relationship that is affected in new ways everyday as we grow closer together. We are challenged not just to make things work -- but to do so with close cooperation and intelligent debate. Of course, at times, it will be difficult. But in the end, we must build on recent successes, identify new challenges, and create new mechanisms to further our mutual interests.
Each of the important bilateral meetings in March marks an opportunity for progress in making Mexico and United States safer places for all of our citizens, in maximizing the productivity and competitiveness of both our economies, and in creating more opportunities for the people of both our countries. Although we face many difficult decisions and discussions in the month ahead, our countries are blessed with leaders who are committed to action.
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