| | |  News Around the Republic of Mexico | August 2009 
North America Leaders to Tackle Flu, Drug Gangs in Mexico
 Sophie Nicholson - Agence France-Presse
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August 07, 2009
| | Mexico's Foreign Secretary Patricia Espinosa speaks to the press about the upcoming North American summit in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug, 6, 2009. The summit will be held in Guadalajara, Mexico, on Aug. 9-10. (AP/Marco Ugarte) | |
Mexico City – Mexican drug trafficking joins swine flu and climate change on a packed agenda of talks between North American leaders in Mexico this weekend, under the shadow of the closely-tied neighbors' economic woes.
President Felipe Calderon, who is carrying out a controversial military crackdown on organized crime in Mexico, will host US President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the western city of Guadalajara for a two-day meeting starting Sunday.
With the death toll in Mexico's drug cartel violence approaching 10,000 since the start of 2008, according to government and media reports, Calderon is under pressure to demonstrate the success of his policies against the cartels, which have spread their influence as far as Canada and even Africa.
During the Obama administration the United States has for the first time admitted a shared responsibility in Mexico's cartel problem and announced measures to enhance border security and tackle gun smuggling, on top of 1.4 billion dollars of security aid over three years under the Merida Initiative.
Ahead of this weekend's meeting, however, a key US senator delayed the release of a report needed to free some 100 million dollars under the plan, citing human rights concerns, the Washington Post reported.
Senator Patrick Leahy said in a statement that it was not clear that Mexico's security forces were accountable to the rule of law.
Other pressing concerns are also on the agenda in Mexico, including curbing greenhouse-gas emissions ahead of a key climate summit in December, the threat of swine flu, and immigration reform.
Leaders will also discuss the prospects for recovery in the three major economies that have been tied by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for 15 years.
Amid the economic squeeze, Canada and Mexico want assurances the United States will not resort to protectionism.
Canada also faces Mexican pressure in a visa dispute.
Mexican-Canadian relations turned frosty last month when Canada announced that visitors from Mexico, as well as the Czech Republic, would have to obtain visas before entering the country, in order to curb fraudulent asylum applicants.
"There are some reports that apparently this new requirement from the Canadian government is because Mexican drug cartels are arriving into Canada, especially the west part of Canada and they're having some violence problems," political analyst Hazel Blackmore, from Mexico's ITAM university, told AFP.
Violence flared in Mexico after Calderon declared war on drug cartels more than two years ago, prompting armed resistance from drug barons and setting off a turf war between rival gangs, particularly near the US border.
After a defeat for Calderon's party in mid-term elections, the Mexican president needs support to continue his crackdown, as well as to pick up the economy.
Like the United States, Mexico has sunk deep into recession, with much of its industry tied to the worst-affected areas of the US economy - cars and construction - and migrant workers north of the border sending less money home.
Meanwhile, US companies are hoping for a resolution to a trade dispute with Mexico after the United States cancelled a program authorizing some Mexican trucks to operate in the United States, in violation of NAFTA.
Mexico responded by slapping some 2.4 billion dollars in tariffs on 89 US products in March.
Joint measures to contain swine flu, which hobbled Mexico's tourism industry after it broke out here in April, are also a key concern on the continent worst hit by A(H1N1).
Agenda of North American Summit to be Held in Guadalajara on August 9-10
Presidencia de la República
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August 07, 2009
The Presidency reports that President Felipe Calderón will meet with U.S. President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister as part of the North American Leaders' Summit to be held in Guadalajar, Jalisco on August 9 and 10.
The activities of this summit are listed below:
Sunday August 9
Bilateral meeting between President Felipe Calderón and Prime Minister of Canada
17:15 hrs
Bilateral Meeting between President Calderón and President of the United States, Barack Obama.
18:00 hrs
Private dinner for North American leaders
19:15 hrs
Cultural Event
20:30 hrs
Sunday August 10
Trilateral Working Meeting for Leaders, First Session
Topics: Citizens’ Welfare, Security and Hemisphere Issues.
09:00 hrs
Trilateral Working Meeting for Leaders, Second Session.
Topics: Clean energies, Environment and Climate Change; Competitiveness and Economic Issues and a Vision of North America.
10:00 hrs
Official Photograph
11:00 hrs
Press Statement from the Leaders of Mexico, the United States and Canada.
11:30 hrs
* Agenda subject to change.
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