NINTH MEETING FOR BILATERAL POLITICAL CONSULTATIONS BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Carlos de Icaza, and the Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia, Sergey A. Ryabkov, met today in St. Petersburg on the sidelines of the G20 Sherpas meeting for the 9th meeting of bilateral political consultations between Mexico and Russia.

Both sides welcomed the excellent state of the political relationship and agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in order to form a strategic relationship that better utilizes the economic potential of both countries.

Undersecretary de Icaza reiterated President Peña Nieto’s appreciation for being invited to the G20 Leaders Summit that will be held in St. Petersburg in September. He also repeated President Peña Nieto’s invitation to Vladimir Putin to visit Mexico in the near future.

Regarding trade, the two officials discussed Russia’s decision to suspend importation of meat products from Mexico and the anti-dumping measures Mexico applies to Russian steel. They agreed that these issues are disrupting trade between the two countries, and they agreed to make progress with the technical negotiations being conducted by experts from both countries in order to find ways to resolve the situation.

The two parties welcomed the increase in Russian tourism to Mexico, helped in large part by the direct flights that now exist between both countries. They also talked about the study conducted by the Mexico Tourism Board (CPTM) on opening an office in Moscow in 2013 or 2014, and the possibility of also opening a ProMéxico office there.

Regarding legal issues, they committed to making progress with new methods of cooperation to enhance the existing legal framework, particularly with regard to peaceful uses of nuclear energy, shipping and an extradition treaty. The Russians stressed their special interest in signing an agreement to exempt ordinary passports from needing visas, an issue currently being studied in Mexico.

At the multilateral level, the G20 dominated the discussion, and Undersecretary de Icaza, as Mexico’s Sherpa, reiterated Mexico’s support for the Russian Presidency of the G20. On regional issues, they exchanged views Middle East issues, particularly the case of Syria and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.