FOREIGN SECRETARY LUIS VIDEGARAY: Thank you, Secretary Tillerson, for hosting us; thank you, Secretary Kelly for being here, and to all the people involved, from the U.S. government as well as the Mexican agencies participating in this meeting today, thank you very much.
I will switch to Spanish in a moment to refer to the conversation that we just had here in the State Department, but before doing that, let me refer to something that just happened today, very important to the U.S.-Mexican relationship and to North America.
Today, as you all know, the U.S. Trade Representative sent notice to the U.S. Congress about his intention to start the process of NAFTA renegotiation. The government of Mexico welcomes this development; we are prepared; we are ready to work together with both the governments of the U.S. and Canada to make our trade agreement better. Better for the people of Mexico, the people of the U.S. and the people of Canada.
We understand that this is a 25-year-old agreement; the world has changed; we have learned a lot and we can make it better. We can make this a negotiation that is good for the three parties involved, certainly under a win-win framework.
The Ministry of the Economy in Mexico will lead the process; we have a very capable negotiating team and we'll approach this process constructively. And we are sure that this is going to be a step towards improving our relationship and building a future together. Now, if you allow me, I will switch to Spanish.
Today, we took another step towards building a new bilateral relationship between Mexico and the United States, a broad, deep and clearly complex relationship, a relationship that has many aspects, and we are working on all of them from a comprehensive perspective.
Just as there is already a process underway related to trade, our cooperation in security matters, particularly in combating the criminal organizations operating in both territories and other regions of the world, is a fundamental part of our cooperation.
Today's conversation has its roots in previous conversations, especially the meeting we had the honor of having in Mexico City with Secretaries Tillerson and Kelly, where we agreed to discuss this common problem from a team perspective and from a comprehensive perspective that covers all of the components.
Today's meeting was one of analysis, to share diagnoses in order to build a new shared strategy. Although it was not a meeting in which we reached new agreements or developed specific strategies, it was a meeting in which we were able to arrive at fundamental agreements about the nature of the problem, our diagnosis and, above all, an understanding that we have to attack together all the links of this criminal business model.
We have to get past the mutual blame game, the reciprocal finger pointing, and understand that all demand creates supply and all supply creates demand, and if the governments of Mexico and the United States argue about who is responsible, who is at fault, who is to blame, the only one who wins is organized crime, which is bringing violence and death to both sides of the border.
This is the time to dare to think differently, to trust more in ourselves and to work together on all, I repeat, all the links of the production chain: cultivation, the importation of materials, distribution, cash flow, the flow of arms and, of course, the problem of demand that is at the root of this evil that costs us so much in both nations.
We are going to continue working. There is no doubt that we have a long road ahead, but today we have taken a very important step by jointly developing a diagnosis and, above all, a commitment, a commitment for both governments to work as a team to tackle this problem, which is everyone's problem.
I would like to thank the different areas of the Mexican government, the Interior Secretary, of course, but there were other areas of our government represented here as well, such as the Finance Ministry, the Attorney General's Office and Cisen, as part of this goal of establishing a common diagnosis. They will continue to participate in this process in a coordinated fashion.
Lastly, I would like to express the most sincere appreciation to the Armed Forces of Mexico, which for years have been a fundamental pillar in the fight against this serious phenomenon and which, with their lives, with their efforts, have demonstrated their love for their country. We know we can count on them and we would like to express our gratitude and our most sincere appreciation for their presence and their participation in these key actions.
Thank you, Secretary Tillerson; thank you, Secretary Kelly.
Questions and answers at Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray’s press conference in Washington, D.C.
Question: Secretary Tillerson, this is at least the third time that the president has made an announcement ahead of your talks that the Mexicans (inaudible). When you flew to Mexico, he said that he would deport all migrants there (inaudible). He signed an executive order about the wall when the Foreign Minister was in town and this morning told Congress that he'd renegotiate NAFTA. Are you going to be able to negotiate with Mexico when the President keeps stepping on your toes?
Are the Americans negotiating in good faith and what did you say about NAFTA in your meeting?
Secretary Tillerson: I hope what this morning's press event with you is demonstrating is that there is a broad range of issues of great importance and common concern between the United States and Mexico.
Obviously, trade is an important, extremely important, issue and I think the filing with Congress this morning to start moving toward a fast-track authority is a very positive move. And I think it does demonstrate a sincere effort on the part of the president. I'll leave it to those who will be involved directly in those discussions to comment in the future about those.
But what I would say is that I hope what you take away from today is an understanding that there is much more to the U.S.- Mexico relationship than just NAFTA. The wall does not define our relationship.
We have so many areas of mutual interest and I think the focus on transcriminal organizations, the focus on the devastating effect that drug trafficking, illicit trafficking of drugs, and other illicit trafficking through organized crime is having on both of our countries in very tragic ways.
And I think we had a spirit today of very open, very frank, very candid conversations about where we have succeeded in the past and what is standing in the way of our success in the future, and I think there is a very strong willingness, and you heard this expressed I think in the comments of both secretaries from Mexico, a very strong commitment to overcoming whatever those obstacles may have been in the past, whether it be in sharing of intelligence information, sharing of resources, we have one common objective here, and this is to end the tragic impact of the illicit drug trade on both sides of our border.
We know what we know and we as Americans need to confront that we are the market, there is no other market for these activities. It is all coming here. But for us, Mexico wouldn't have a transcriminal organized crime problem. And the violence that they're suffering. And we really have to own up to that.
We've had very open, frank conversations. There are so many areas of cooperation between our two countries and we're going to focus on those that we can make progress on now, and there will be other talks to make progress on other areas of importance, including the renegotiation, restructuring of NAFTA.
Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray: We've been informed all along the way at each and every step of the process about the sending of the notice that happened today, by the USTR's office, by the Department of Commerce and by the White House. And let me say something else, this is something that we very much welcome, and this is a development that we've been waiting for, for quite some time.
It's good news for Mexico, and we are willing and we are prepared to start a constructive renegotiation once the 90-day period goes by, this will be mid-August, and we're ready to go. So what happened today, what the USTR sent to Congress, is something that is a significant net positive for the Mexico-U.S. relationship and we will build upon that.
Question: Secretary Videgaray, the U.S. government continues to toy with the idea of splitting NAFTA into two bilateral agreements and not just one trilateral one. Is this an option for Mexico? And, Secretary Tillerson, journalists in Mexico are being killed at record numbers. This week, probably one of the most important reporters covering the drug trade was killed in Mexico. Will you raise this issue with the Mexican government of effectively prosecuting these crimes?
Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray: Thank you, José. The North American Free Trade Agreement is a trilateral treaty and the talks must have a trilateral nature, that is our position. And what we have heard from the United States government, especially from Wilbur Ross, the Secretary of Commerce, is that the United States does not yet have an opinion in one sense or another. We do have a preference. The agreement is trilateral and should continue to be a trilateral platform.
Why? Because this is what allows us to maximize the competitive potential of the region that should be the most productive and most competitive region in the world, which is North America. Value chains, particularly in manufacturing, are highly integrated, and having a common trading framework is certainly the best platform to continue to promote.
We need to acknowledge that even in the present treaty there are certain aspects that apply only bilaterally, each of the countries excluded certain sectors from the agreement at the time, over 20 years ago; some sectors in Mexico have special treatment under the agreement. Within the framework of the agreement there are certain issues that are bilateral in nature between Mexico and the United States, or Mexico and Canada, or Canada and the United States, but our preference is clear; we believe that the framework of a trilateral agreement is in the best interest of the three economies and the peoples of Canada, the United States and Mexico.
Secretary Tillerson: With respect to the tragic death of the important journalist in Mexico, we offer our deepest condolences certainly to the loved ones and the family members and it is yet again another tragic loss among journalists but also many others as a result of the violence related to the illicit drug trade. I think that, in terms of how we address that, we had very good discussions about how do we improve the information sharing among law enforcement agencies on both sides of the border, because these cartels and organizations operate across the border as well, and we discussed how to really identify those organizational connections, how do we share information that will allow us to better identify who is responsible, have those people arrested and brought to justice.
Similarly, we had discussions around how to strengthen the judicial system. We know that Mexico has a draft law for consideration that would allow for the seizure of property and assets of those who have been arrested and charged in the illicit drug trade. We have similar laws in this country and we have encouraged Mexico to proceed with the enactment of that law, as well. So there has been very good sharing among ideas on the law enforcement side as well and the justice side so we are working together cooperatively to attack the problem.
Question: Secretary Kelly and Secretary Tillerson, given the frequency with which you both interact with foreign counterparts, as is the case today, and much of what is involved in your everyday work, and given the investigations, the former FBI director's memos, and all that's happening domestically, ahead of the president's first foreign trip, with significant meetings scheduled with foreign leaders, has the president lost leverage or credibility, and have these issues hampered efforts that you have with international counterparts?
Secretary Kelly: No, I just returned from a trip I took to Jordan and Saudi Arabia and they are looking forward in that part of the world to the arrival of the president and the gesture of where he's going first. I can say the same thing about the Israelis and others, I'll let the Secretary of State answer that but no, I interact with a fairly large number of international players, most often by phone, I am referring to Europeans, Latin Americans, Central Americans, Africans, across the globe and they are working with us as partners on a range of issues, aviation security, drugs issues, immigration, so I feel no effect from when the president is taken to task in the press about something he may or may not have said and certainly something he may or may not have meant.
We share and, as I say, I interact with a great many foreign leaders at the ministerial level, my counterparts and I share as much information with them as our laws allow and they are open to that in those places. I cannot share more. The fact is that they understand that and the fact that this country, my department, our President, has the safety of our citizens and their citizens, number one, in his mind.
I guess I would characterize the expectation among the rest of the world, and I have had the opportunity now to pretty well interact and meet with leaders from Europe to Russia to Central Asia to the Middle East to Africa to Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia, so I have a pretty good exposure now to them globally, to how the world is seeing the current administration and what I would tell you is there is a great sense of expectation and I think a great welcomeness of America returning to the scene. Many of the leaders particularly in the part of the world where we will be traveling, the Middle East, Central Asia and even parts of Africa are ready for a period of what they view to have been neglect to outright dismissal of their concerns, they’re ready for reengagement with America. So I think there is a great anticipation of the president’s trip as to what could be accomplished and we in our dialogues have identified much that can be accomplished when we work together and that is the purpose of this trip is really one of conveying a message that America is back, in terms of our role, our role as a facilitator, to address the daunting challenges that exist in that part of the world, most particularly the challenge of global terrorism and how we confront global terrorism as a global peoples. It is not just one nation’s challenge; it is one that is shared by all of us. I think the importance of this trip and President Trump’s leadership are around bringing people the world over to understand that we are in this together. This is not a battle about religions, this is not a battle about cultures, this is a battle about good and evil. And the goodness of people of all faiths will prevail over this evil. And that is the president’s message that he will be taking, and he will be convening people globally to confront this face of evil wherever it presents itself in the world. There’s a great anticipation around that leadership.
I think the people in the rest of the world do not have the time to pay attention to what’s happening domestically here. They’re more concerned with about what they see happening in the relationship with their country and what we are bringing to address these very serious challenges that are affecting all of us.
Question: Secretary Osorio, I would like to see if you could explain when you said that you would like to see a binational effort that is more balanced, what do you mean by that? And which would be the possible changes that there could be about how the Mexican government is fighting against the drug trafficking organizations?
I would like to know about the drop in illegal crossings, due to the policies that President Trump has announced on the immigration front. We didn’t hear anything regarding drugs. My question is, why? And can we expect to see a significant drop on drug seizures across the south border after the wall is finished, maybe by the end of this administration?
Secretary Miguel Osorio Chong: When we had this dialogue, we talked about the cost for the U.S. and Mexico due to the drug issue. We talked about the human cost in the U.S. from drug use and the loss of human lives in Mexico on the side of the Armed Forces and authorities that fight organized crime.
We can’t talk about unilateral actions from the U.S. or Mexico. We have to have firm action on both sides. We have to share information and reach agreements that don’t allow these organizations to have access to the market and Mexico is part of the problem. Production must be stopped. This is basically what we have to achieve. And it has to be based on a comprehensive strategy that Secretary Videgaray mentioned.
One of the issues is security. We have to work on that because we don’t want the idea to exist that this violence is not addressed on our side. That is why we are talking about all of the issues, all of the problems that are faced by both sides and the alternatives that we can find to resolve this issue together.
Secretary Kelly: Regarding the issue of the smuggling of drugs into the United States, we already do a great deal at the border and not alone, we do it with our Mexican counterparts to the south. The vast majority of hard drugs, methamphetamines, cocaine and heroin come up smuggled primarily in vehicles, trucks, that kind of thing, particularly in the commercial trucks, oftentimes the driver doesn’t even know they’re in there. So, the first point, let me start at the end. The end is to get after the transnational criminal organizations, the networks in Mexico and in the United States. That’s the last thing.
The first thing we need to do, because it generates all of the problems, and that is the drug demand in the United States. And not only the drugs that are used by addicts, but the recreational use of drugs. If Americans understood that playing around with drugs on a weekend for fun ultimately ends or results in the lives lost in Mexico, by law enforcement and by the military, or lives lost in Colombia or Central America, if Americans understood that recreational playing around with drugs is resulting in the deaths of reporters and media people throughout the region but particularly and unfortunately in Mexico right now, police officers, soldiers, prosecutors, judges, if Americans who used drugs recreationally understood that and stopped doing that, that would significantly reduce the amount of drugs and consequently the amount of profits that come out of the United States.
So the most important thing we can do is reduce the drug demand. We’ve never tried it; we’ve never done it; we have to develop a comprehensive drug demand reduction program in the United States that involves everybody; that involves professionals, sports, Hollywood, involves governors, mayors, involves parents, priests, involves everybody. We can reduce the amount of drugs consumed in the United States significantly. It will never go to zero but we can reduce it. But until we do, we will be fighting at best a neutral battle on the border. The drug traffickers are extremely agile, extremely innovative in how they do business, incredibly brutal. It’s all about drug demand and drug demand reduction.
Physical barriers work. There are 650 miles of physical barrier already on the southwest border between the United States and Mexico. All of that built previous to this administration. So there is use for physical barriers. There is also use for technology. To say the least, there’s use for collaboration between Mexican authorities and U.S. authorities. And then obviously it’s all about people that patrol, talk to each other, police actions on both sides of the border, so there’s no one single solution to this. It’s a multifaceted problem and it needs multifaceted solutions.