2009 Press Releases
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton And Mexican Secretary of Foreign Relations Patricia Espinosa Cantellano and Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon After the North American Trilateral Ministerial Meeting
July 16, 2009 | Benjamin Franklin Room | Washington, D.C.
Secretary Clinton: Well, good
afternoon, and I’m delighted to be here alongside my counterparts and
colleagues from our neighbors to the north and the south, Canadian
Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon, Mexican Foreign Secretary Patricia
Espinosa. Each of them have hosted me in their countries, and I am so
pleased that they could be here today for this important trilateral
consultation.
This is an example of what I was speaking about yesterday in my
speech, the kind of partnership that the United States is very committed
to not only building, but in this case, really deepening and
broadening. The partnership between our nations and our entire North
American region has such enormous potential to enhance safety and
opportunity for our citizens as well as health and prosperity. And we
are focused upon our shared assets and values, particularly our dynamic
economies and our creative hardworking citizens, to make North America
the most prosperous, safest, and competitive region in the world.
We had an excellent series of discussions that each of us, in
turn, led. And we really focused on concrete ways we can work together
to capitalize on our strengths and address our common concerns. We
discussed the upcoming North American Leaders’ Summit that will be
hosted in Mexico by President Calderon. President Obama plans to
attend. And Foreign Minister Espinosa can share with you some very
specific details in a moment.
We discussed a range of global issues that affect us as well as
closer to home; particularly the political crisis in Honduras. We
reaffirmed our commitment to restore constitutional and democratic
order, and underscored our support for the dialogue process that was
started by President Arias. We support a peaceful, negotiated
resolution and urge other countries to play a positive role in achieving
that outcome, and to refrain from any actions that could lead to
violence.
We reviewed our joint response to this spring’s H1N1 outbreak,
and I want to commend publicly the Government of Mexico, as I said in
our private meetings. Mexico’s leadership in the face of the H1N1
crisis, its openness and transparency, its sharing of information set a
real model. It also was part of a prior agreement that had been entered
into by our three countries where we did agree to work together in the
face of such a challenge. We believe that our cross-government,
cross-border communication were instrumental in minimizing the spread of
the illness. Now we understand that the flu is seasonal. It’s likely
to come back this fall in North America. And we want to enhance our
vigilance and collaboration and build on the strong relationships
already established.
This meeting was extremely successful from my perspective
because the more we can coordinate, the more we can present a united
front in world venues like the G-20 or APEC, other places where we have
membership, the more we can do for our individual countries and for our
mutual future.
So with that, let me turn to Secretary Espinosa and invite her
to make some remarks.
Foreign Minister Espinosa: Thank you, Secretary.
(Via interpreter) Friends from the media, ladies and gentlemen,
it is a pleasure to be here with you today for this very fruitful
meeting that was held today between the foreign ministries of the U.S.,
Canada, and Mexico. First of all, I would like to thank Secretary
Clinton for her hospitality and her willingness to hold this meeting,
which is a very important event for our three countries.
This event, as Secretary Clinton has pointed out, focused on
addressing the issues that affect the three countries in our region,
North America. This is very important in order to make progress in
terms of preparing for the upcoming leaders’ summit that, as I was
saying this morning, will take place in Guadalajara in Mexico on the 9th
and 10th of August. We, the Mexican people, are very honored and very
fortunate to be hosts for that important meeting.
During our conversations, I expressed my agreement with
Secretary Clinton as well as Minister Lawrence Cannon from Canada. We
agreed on the importance of continuing to push forward in our region
with mechanisms for cooperation that respond to a very clear mandate
from our leaders. We should make use of our positive experience in
trilateral cooperation. We should have a more strategic approach, a
deeper approach, and also an approach that allows us to truly have
results for families in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico so that they may
benefit from our relationship.
I feel that it is very important that this meeting between the
foreign ministers has allowed us to expand on the regional and global
agenda. This is a definitive moment internationally. So consultations
between the three countries of North America are extremely important so
that we can be more influential and so that we can promote the values
that we share, as Secretary Clinton has stated. We have agreed to push
forward with this engagement, to have a systematic approach to this
engagement, so that we can contribute in a more significant fashion
toward building a world that is more fair, that is cleaner, and that is
more balanced.
As far as world and hemispheric issues, I would like to comment
on the issue of Honduras. We all agree on the importance of the fact
that the constitutional order was broken. We have all condemned and
completely rejected that fracture of constitutional order. It is
important to reach a negotiated solution that is based on dialogue. And
in that sense, we firmly support the efforts to mediate by President
Arias of Costa Rica, and we have expressed our interest and our desire
in having a process that allows for a return to democracy in Honduras
without any blood being spilled, without any type of violence.
The three countries of this region, we all face common problems,
and we have common solutions. Moreover, the challenges of our time
demand coordinated action with our neighbors, our partners and our
friends. As a proof of our need to work together, to work jointly, we
have the health emergency that took place in North America caused by the
H1N1 epidemic. And I would like to thank the words of Secretary
Clinton for her recognition of President Calderon’s decisions.
And at the same time, I would like to say that we saw this as a
shared problem, and our agencies acted in a coordinated fashion and we
were able to confirm that in order to address a crisis like that, we
need to work together, as is the case with the international economic
crisis, where Mexico, the United States, and Canada have achieved an
important consultation process on that topic.
As a region, we have been able to promote our position and we
have been able to show that the way out of this crisis that affects
everyone is by acting together. We have worked in this joint fashion in
order to consolidate the region as a space for trade and economic
exchange that is of benefit to all.
We reviewed some general topics within the agenda that will be
addressed in Guadalajara by President Barack Obama and President
Calderon, as well as Prime Minister Stephen Harper. We looked at the
issue of regional competitiveness. We also need to – looked at the way
we need to improve the way in which we produce certified transport and
market our products, looking toward being more efficient, and with
greater security. That is key so that the products of our region can be
the most affordable and the ones that are most beneficial to the
families of this part of the world, and so that we can compete with
other regions of the world.
We have also discussed clean energy, the environment. We
discussed actions to take given climate change. These will be the
trademarks of the dialogue between the leaders of North America. And we
have also expressed that we want this region to become a model for
other regions of the world, a model of cooperation on these topics. We
should recognize that – we should realize that the threats that our
hemisphere faces are threats that go beyond our borders, and that is why
our conversation had a significant focus on issues of security.
We have put together a broader concept of security, a concept
that goes beyond our already growing cooperation to combat organized
crime and other threats that can affect our region. We have looked at a
security focus. That means we need to be better prepared for
epidemics, for natural disasters. We need to work jointly in a
cooperative manner in order to offer all of our communities a place
where their peace of mind is ensured.
As you know, Guadalajara will be the first trilateral meeting
for president – between President Obama, Prime Minister Harper and
President Calderon. We are very pleased with the dynamics of this
engagement. Clearly, its objective is to have a greater impetus for our
region. That is why the summit at Guadalajara, I am sure, will offer a
valuable opportunity for a political dialogue at the highest level
under conditions that are propitious to give North America greater
influence on world topics.
Once again then, I would like to thank you for your hospitality.
I would like to reiterate also the great satisfaction from the Mexican
people and government for being host of this important meeting in
August.
Foreign Minister Cannon: It – I certainly, at the outset, want
to thank Secretary Clinton for hosting this event. It certainly was a
pleasure to participate alongside Secretary – with Secretary Espinosa in
this meeting, which, of course, provides a timely opportunity to
discuss mutual interests and concerns to us as neighbors and advance, of
course, the cause of the North American issues that our leaders will
take up. (Speaking in French.)
(Via interpreter) Mexico, the United States, and Canada share
the same continent, our population, our economies, our environment, and
the same challenges. All this is intimately linked.
(In English) Today, Secretary Espinosa and I discussed some of
these challenges, as well as the opportunities available to us in an
effort to ensure that North America’s economy remains prosperous and
that our citizens be safe and reach, of course, their full potential.
The many areas that were discussed are grounded in the common interests
of all North Americans, with distinct voices and a diversity of ideas.
We spoke of the future of our continent and its role in the world.
(Via interpreter) The recent arrival of H1N1 confirms the
importance to work together, to take the necessary measures in order to
be prepared for such challenges.
(In English) We focused on four priority areas for
strengthening cooperation: The economy, since the global financial
crisis and the recession have significantly affected the economies of
our three countries; clean energy, climate change, given our highly
integrated continental energy market and shared environment, and the
latest commitments made at L'Aquila during the last G-8 meeting;
security and citizen safety, given not only the successful trilateral
cooperation on H1N1, as I mentioned before, and the lessons learned from
it, but as well the growing challenges of transnational organizations
and – I’m sorry, transnational organized crime on our continent.
(Via interpreter) We have also discussed regional challenges
and what is at stake in all three countries, and we are working together
to find solutions. Our discussion was very productive and pragmatic.
(In English) Many of the challenges – of these challenges
require a North American solution. So we laid the ground for our three
leaders to have a fruitful discussion in the month of August. We are
looking forward to President Obama and President Calderon’s crucial
contributions at the North American Leaders’ Summit that Prime Minister
Harper will attend.
Merci. Thank you very much.
Secretary Clinton: Thank you. We’d be glad to take your
questions.
Moderator: Our first question goes to Jill Dougherty of CNN.
Question: Thank you very much, Madame Secretary. Over the past
few days, Madame Secretary, we’ve been hearing some very strong
frustration coming from you about the vetting process. And then also,
at the same time, there has been a spate, which I’m sure you’ve seen, of
reports about your allegedly being sidelined by the White House.
And I would ask you, if you could, to set us straight on this.
Is the White House actually making it more difficult for you to put the
team that you want in place? And then also, how would you describe the
impact that you, as the Secretary of State, are having directly on the
formation of U.S. foreign policy?
Secretary Clinton: Well, first let me say that I don’t think
there’s anyone who’s ever served in government who is not frustrated by
the system that our country has. Most governments after they’re elected
are up and going in a relatively short period of time. We are now six
months into our new Administration, and it’s not only here, but across
the government, we don’t have critical positions filled. I think it’s
pretty obvious that the process has gotten much more complicated,
cumbersome, and lengthy, and that is something that I hear from
everyone. And it is a matter that I think we’re going to have to
address. And it’s not just this Administration; it’s gotten
increasingly more difficult.
But it’s hard to explain in my position to our foreign
counterparts that we don’t yet have positions filled that would be the
natural interlocutors for their counterparts in other countries. But
that’s something that we’re all frustrated by; it’s not in any way
limited to myself or even to the State Department or USAID.
I don’t really pay a lot of attention to what is said. I really
stay focused on the work that I do. I broke my elbow, not my larynx.
(Laughter.) I have been consistently involved in the shaping and
implementation of our foreign policy. And I’m off to India and Thailand
tonight. I will be back to co-lead the Strategic and Economic Dialogue
with China. I will be meeting with Prime Minister Maliki as we
continue to support the transition of Iraq to a better future, and then I
will be off to Africa. So I think that I’m just going to do the work
and make the contribution. I feel very honored and positive about my
working relationship with the White House and in my personal
relationship with President Obama.
Mr. Kelly: The next question to Hugues Poulin, Radio Canada.
Question: I would like to ask you about Guantanamo. Canada has
one citizen in Guantanamo. He was arrested in Afghanistan many years
ago. He’s been six years or more now in Guantanamo. He’s facing
serious charges. But many organizations consider him as a child
soldier. They want him back to Canada. Even the judge asked government
– Canadian Government to bring him back to Canada. But until now, the
Government of Canada refused to do that, even challenged the judge
decision, and appeal.
So are you going to ask Canadian Government to bring back Omar
Khadr, or are you going to judge him in Guantanamo? I would like to
know what’s the story now.
Secretary Clinton: Well, as you know, President Obama,
immediately upon taking office, recommitted our country to our basic
values – prohibiting torture and setting in motion the closure of
Guantanamo. There is an extremely rigorous process that is underway
that is evaluating each and every one of the detainees. Some have
already been released and transferred to either their home countries or
other receiving countries. We’re going through this in a very
thoughtful and diligent manner, so I don’t want to comment on any
particular case.
But the President and certainly I and our entire Administration
are 100 percent committed to the closure of Guantanamo, and to
proceeding with the transfer of those who can be transferred, the trial
of those who should be tried, and the continuing detention of those who
pose a grave threat to not only our country, but people everywhere.
Question: Omar Khadr will be trialed in Guantanamo?
Secretary Clinton: I’m not – no, I’m not commenting on any
individual case.
Question: Thank you.
Mr. Kelly: The next question is Jose Diaz, Reforma.
Question: Hi, good afternoon. This is a question for Foreign
Minister Cannon. As you know, the decision by Canadian authorities to
require a visa for Mexican citizens willing to travel to Canada is
causing an uproar in Mexico that even many people say goes against the
spirit of these kind of meetings. There are thousands of businessmen
and students in Mexico currently that one week ago didn’t need a visa,
and now, they are required to produce a medical exam and a proof of not
having a criminal record.
How are you going to solve this crisis? And when was exact date
that you notified the Mexican foreign ministry about this decision?
Foreign Minister Cannon: Well, thank you for that question.
First, let me be very clear in terms of our relations with Mexico.
Canada enjoys a very strong and productive relationship with the Mexican
Government. I have been to see Secretary Espinosa on a couple of
occasions. We’ve discussed numerous issues. We’ve strengthened our
trade relations over the course of numerous years, the tourism industry.
We’ve been able to look at ways of expanding education and increasing,
of course, our trade numbers with Mexico.
This issue, in terms of the visas – as you know, Canada had
looked at the visa issue. We’ve looked at it for some time. Those
people who are seeking refugee status are unduly high. We are in a
position where we need to look at and find solutions. We will be
working with the – with my Mexican counterpart, and my counterpart will
also engage her colleague in immigration as well as Minister Kenney back
in Canada to work this, work the solutions, and find the ways to be
able to eventually lift the visa requirement.
But from now until such time as that occurs, we have to be able
to straighten the situation out. And once again, I want to make this
perfectly clear, the relations between Canada and Mexico far supersede
the elements of visa requirements. It’s a very important relation that
we want to continue to nourish and develop.
Question: (Inaudible) by the notification to the foreign
minister of Mexico, please?
Foreign Minister Cannon: Well, maybe my colleague can answer
that.
FOREIGN MINISTER ESPINOSA: (Via interpreter) I wanted to say –
is that first of all, I wanted to talk about the importance and the
complexity and the size of the relationship that exists between Mexico
and Canada, and how much we appreciate that relationship which has been
so beneficial for our two countries and both of our societies.
Now having said that, I would also like to say that from the
very first moment that we were notified that the intent was there of the
Government of Canada to require visas for Mexican nationals traveling
to that country, we stated, with a great deal of respect but also very
firmly, that we were in disagreement with this measure, that it was our
opinion that this is not something that is going to help to resolve the
problem that Canada’s trying to solve, and also our willingness to work
on an urgent basis and very intensely to achieve, as Minister Cannon
said, in understanding ways that would allow us to correct this decision
which has already been taken and that has been implemented by Canadian
officials.
You asked me when? Monday. Monday was the day that we were
formally notified. We had talked. We had been talking, of course,
about this intent that this decision was coming, but when exactly we
were – the decision was taken, when we were told, okay, we’re going to
do this from now on, it was Monday. Later on – and I thank Minister
Cannon for letting me have a bilateral space with him so that we can
talk more broadly about the practical issues that have been coming up
with respect to the implementation of this decision. Minister Cannon,
thank you very much for that willingness, and we will continue to work
in this constructive spirit, in the certainty that we will be able to
solve these issues and go back to the way the situation was before.
Question: Madame Secretary, I have (inaudible) Iran. Iran has
announced today that the head of the Atomic agency, Mr. Aqazadeh, has
resigned. He was vice president of the Islamic Republic and also a
close ally of Mousavi. And tomorrow, Mousavi and Rafsanjani are going
to participate in a big demonstration against the regime in Tehran. So I
wanted to know what you make of the situation in Iran right now.
Secretary Clinton: Well, as you may know, I talked about that
yesterday in my speech. I don’t have anything to add to what I said
before. Clearly, the decisions about what happens inside Iran regarding
its future government makeup and other matters that are within the
control of the Iranian people are ones that we watch with great
interest, but know that it is up to Iran to determine the kind of future
that it wants.
I would just underscore what I said yesterday, that we continue
to believe that it would be in the long-term interests of Iran to begin
to make different choices. It has a very stark choice as to whether or
not it will make some changes that apparently many people in Iran want
from the inside, and certainly, the international community is hoping to
see in its external relations. But that is going to be up to the
Iranians.
Mr. Kelly: The next question, Sheldon Alberts, Canwest.
Question: Hi, this is to Foreign Secretary Espinosa and to
Minister Cannon. I’m wondering if you – if the Mexican Government is
considering any sort of reciprocal action on Canadian citizens or if it
would consider if there’s no satisfactory result in terms of Canadian –
the Canadian Government lifting the visa requirement at some point. So
I’m wondering, first of all, if there’s any retaliation planned.
Minister Cannon, I’m also wondering whether the Canadian
Government may have underestimated the reaction to this. The European
Union is saying that they may be requiring visas on Canadian travelers
if it’s not satisfied that the action taken against the Czech Republic
was appropriate.
Foreign Minister Espinosa: (Via interpreter) With respect to
this issue, first of all, I’d like to repeat what we just said, how much
we value our relationship with Canada; and, in that respect, to
underline that in Mexico, every year, we get about 1,300,000 travelers
from Canada. It’s one of the countries that brings an important number
of tourists to Mexico. In fact, there are many Canadian citizens who
have made second homes in Mexico, that have retired in Mexico, that
spend some months in Mexico and some months in Canada.
We would not like to in any way damage this flow of people that
so much benefits our country as well as Canadians, and it is for that
reason that we do not expect to impose a visa requirement on Canadian
tourists. However, because of the Canadian Government’s decision in the
sense that visas are applied to every Mexican citizen, we have decided –
and this was today communicated to the Canadian Government – that we
are going to suspend the agreement to not use visas in official and
diplomatic passports.
Foreign Minister Cannon: (Inaudible) that what needs to be said
here clearly is that we’re not looking for – we’re not looking for
difficulties with our allies. What we have noted, though, is that there
has been an increase in the number of immigrants coming to Canada
seeking refugee status, which was, as Minister Kenney pointed out, way
beyond the levels that are acceptable. And so we need to be able to
address this issue, engage this issue. We have done so through our
domestic policy, and we will be doing so as well, seeking solutions and
working cooperatively with our colleagues, both in Mexico as well as in
the Czech Republic, to be able to find the ways to move forward.
Nothing in this situation would lead to believe that there is a
permanency in all of this. We have to be able to find ways to move
forward and to find solutions to it. But this having been said, we
were, and we reached an unacceptable level. And therefore, we had to
intervene and we had to act. And this is precisely what we did.
Advance notice had been forwarded and given to the parties involved, and
Canada acted according to what it needs to do.
Question: (Inaudible.)
Foreign Minister Cannon: (Via interpreter) What I just said is
that in both cases, we realized that it was an unacceptable level of
people who were seeking asylum and seeking the status of refugee in
Canada. This number was totally abnormal, and therefore, my colleague,
the immigration minister, decided to take the measures that needed to be
taken. Well, this being said, this doesn’t prevent us from going on
and keep on working and finding with our colleagues from Mexico and with
our colleagues from the Czech Republic the elements that will allow us
to face this problem.
And I conclude in saying that my colleague, Minister Kenney,
said that in Canada, we needed to reform our system. And therefore, it
is a task that he’s going to work on in the next few weeks and few
months.
But in conclusion, I want to repeat and underline the importance
of our relations both with the European Union, with whom we are
negotiating a wider economic space, but also with Mexico, which is a
privileged partner in North America. And in many multilateral fora, we
are working hand-in-hand to realize different things. They are our
fifth commercial partner in importance.
Mr. Kelly: Jesus Esquivel, Proceso.
Question: Good afternoon. It’s for Madame Secretary Clinton,
my question. In a few days, you’re going to present a report to the
U.S. Congress in reference to the human rights situations in Mexico in
the fight against drugs. We understand that you already take the
decision, and it’s going to be not to withhold the money in the Merida
Initiative for the Mexican case.
Lately, it has been a lot of reports in terms of the Mexican
military are committing torture and horrible human rights violations in
the fight against drugs. My question to you is: Do you believe, with
this reported favor of Mexico, don’t you think the U.S. would lose moral
authority in the human rights situation in terms of violations
committed by the U.S. forces, like in Iraq, Afghanistan? And you are –
in other words, in – you know, there are few human rights violations in
Mexico. But anyway, we have to support the government of Felipe
Calderon.
Secretary Clinton: Well, let me say that I know that President
Calderon is concerned about these matters. He has made very clear that
one of his goals is to make sure that the police forces and the military
forces in Mexico are well trained and certainly conduct themselves in a
manner that meets all expectations and standards.
So what we see here is an administration under President
Calderon locked in a very difficult battle with the most ruthless drug
traffickers and criminal cartels anywhere on the planet. And we have
worked very closely with his administration to provide additional
support for police training, and it is our assessment that the steps
taken and the commitment demonstrated by the Calderon administration is
deserving of confidence.
Now does that mean that there are not violations or actions that
we would find unacceptable? Of course not; that happens in any
society. And certainly, we see it in big city police departments, we
see it in military actions, and it’s not confined to any one country.
But what we are evaluating is the level of commitment by the Calderon
administration to deal with the challenges that it faces in putting
together a police force that is under tremendous pressure – 16 police
officers killed in the last several days. So of course, there has to be
constant reminding of people on the front lines whose families are at
risk, whose children are kidnapped, whose lives are endangered, that
they must comply with certain standards, and we’re absolutely confident
that that is the message being delivered by the Calderon administration.
Thank you very much.
Mr. Kelly: Thank you very much.