JOINT STATEMENT BY CANADA AND MEXICO: A COMMITMENT TO OUR COMMON FUTURE October 25, 2004 Immediate On the occasion of the sixtieth Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between our two countries, the United Mexican States and Canada are pleased to celebrate the growth, maturity and continued dynamism of our relationship. All year long, we have marked this milestone with events that have highlighted the links between our people, as well as our ten years as trading partners under NAFTA. Our countries will continue to strengthen and enhance our strategic bilateral partnership in our region and in the world. Accompanied by an important delegation of ministers, parliamentarians and business people, President Vicente Fox comes to Ottawa to join his Canadian colleagues in assessing and renewing our bilateral ties. During this working visit, Mexico and Canada will review our visions of a common future and how our countries can define the international architecture of the 21st century. Our ties go beyond geography to bonds of friendship, confidence and shared values between our governments and among our citizens. We agree on many objectives, including: the goals of peace, order, good government, social development, trade and investment liberalization, as well as economic growth and prosperity. working together internationally to build consensus on solutions to common global concerns. NAFTA continues to be the basis for a strong North American economy. Within this economic framework, Canada has grown to become Mexico's second largest export market and Mexico is Canada's sixth. We will continue to seek opportunities to make the most of the advantages offered by the NAFTA. Enhancing our Bilateral Partnership Today we launch the Canada-Mexico Partnership, a high-level public-private forum which will strengthen bilateral economic and policy cooperation and promote private and public sector dialogue at senior levels. This initiative will serve as a mechanism for identifying policy areas in which we can facilitate cooperation and enhance opportunities for economic development and investment. Bringing together business leaders, key economic actors, and senior policy makers in this way will foster strategic networks and partnerships. It will enable both our business communities and governments to be more agile in their responses to the challenge of sustaining our prosperity and improving our competitiveness as North American economies, while enhancing our security and improving the quality of life of our citizens. The signing today of a cooperation agreement between the Consejo Mexicano de Commercio Exterior Inversion y Tecnologia (COMCE) and the Canadian Association of Importers and Exporters, along with business agreements signed between Export Development Canada (EDC) and Mexican companies, testify to the leadership shown by these organizations in expanding opportunities in Canada and Mexico. Both countries are highly pleased by the excellent level of cooperation in the area of telecommunications. The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) is a clear example of the advantages of cooperation and a symbol of the strength of our bilateral relationship. For 30 years, the SAWP has provided significant economic and social benefits for both Mexicans and Canadians, relieving labour shortages in Canada and offering rewarding employment opportunities for Mexican workers. In this anniversary year, the program now stretches from the East coast to the West coast, with the employers in British Columbia for the first time involved in the program. The success of the SAWP is underlined by Mexico's announcement today that it will expand its consular network in Canada by opening a new office in Leamington, Ontario, the largest centre of concentration of workers under this program. We will continue to work to modernize the program to ensure maximum benefits to employees and employers in response to Canadian agricultural labour market shortages. In addition, we look forward to exploring and taking advantage of opportunities offered by employers in non-agricultural industries such as tourism and construction through the Low-Skilled Worker Pilot Program. The Government of Canada will continue to act as an intermediary between prospective Canadian employers and the Government of Mexico. The Mexican Government will offer service to employers to recruit and select Mexican workers for such opportunities, thereby expanding the benefits to Mexican workers and Canadian employers in new sectors. We recognize the interdependence between prosperous North American economies and security, and will continue to work to ensure the effective management of our borders, including through the sharing of best practices. We will promote greater contact among all relevant Mexican and Canadian agencies in order to ensure effective public security, while ensuring the free flow of the goods that are so important for both our economies. Defining the International Architecture of the 21st Century We concur in our respect for international law and the use of multilateral institutions to achieve fair global growth, international governance, and the prevention of and peaceful resolution to conflict. We share common concerns on issues such as the advancement of democracy, the rule of law, human rights and in particular the rights of indigenous people. As partners in international organizations, Canada and Mexico agree that the multilateral system must reflect the realities of the 21st century and agree to work together to ensure their ongoing strengthening and relevance. We will continue actively to consult and cooperate in order to give new impetus to reform efforts in the UN and more broadly on possible complementary fora, such as a G20 leaders meeting, where key developed and developing countries could work together to find the way forward on a few critical policy challenges that demand a more concerted global response. Our foreign ministries will continue regular consultations on issues of foreign policy, global affairs and human rights. The letter of agreement signed today between our respective foreign ministries further consolidates these consultative and collaborative ties, as we share and learn from the experience, curriculum and expertise of each other's institutes for foreign service professional development. Protecting the Environment We will continue to work to protect the environment, both at home in our countries and in the world through a variety of multilateral fora. The letter of intent regarding Kyoto Protocol implementation, signed today, will facilitate sharing of information and cooperation on climate change initiatives that reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging market-oriented deployment of greenhouse gas mitigation technologies, including energy efficient and renewable energy technologies. Strengthening Good Governance Practices Canada and Mexico have established a dynamic foundation of cooperation based on good governance practices with transparency, structural reforms, and citizen-focussed government as priorities. We draw attention to this week's launch of @Campus Mexico, an excellent example of our joint commitment to public service professionalization. With its built-in flexibility and adaptability, this project is a model we can share with our hemispheric partners, consistent with the commitments we made at the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City. We encourage efforts amongst our parliamentarians to deepen the continuing dialogue on our common democratic commitment to the Canadian-Mexican bilateral relationship, including through increased parliamentary exchanges and cooperation. As federal states, and promoters of the role of decentralization in strengthening democracies, we invite all interested parties, including cities, Canadian provinces and Mexican states to join us in working together to raise bilateral relations to even higher levels. The Sustainable Cities Initiative is a model for harnessing the expertise and energy of local actors in private-public partnership to improve the quality of life of communities while contributing to their sustainable development. Promoting Cultural Diversity and Education Cultural diversity and education are key elements which contribute to the promotion of greater understanding within our societies. Academic relations are strong, with ten Canadian studies programs in Mexico, nearly 10,000 Mexicans studying in Canada every year and more than 400 agreements between Canadian and Mexico academic and research organizations. Through new academic and cultural initiatives we will share and learn from each other's ideas, discoveries and artistic creations while strengthening the networks of friendship and understanding between the people of our societies. History and geography have made of Mexico and Canada neighbours on the North American continent. Common aspirations and the spirit of opportunity have brought us together as partners. Let this working visit strengthen our partnerships at all levels of our societies in order that future generations in both Mexico and Canada benefit from the dynamism and energy that is unleashed when our citizens come together in common cause. -30- PMO Press Office: (613) 957-5555
