Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Towards an EU-Mexico Strategic Partnership
Date: 2008-07-15
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU relations, Mexico, bilateral relations, cooperation policy, economic relations, environmental policy, international security

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 15.7.2008 
COM(2008) 447 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

Towards an EU-Mexico Strategic Partnership 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

Towards an EU-Mexico Strategic Partnership 

1. 

MEXICO ON THE GLOBAL SCENE 

Mexico is one of the two largest economies in Latin America, with a population of over 105 
million and a per capita income of almost $10 000. Mexico has been a member of the North 
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) since 1994 and has concluded a set of free trade 
agreements  (FTA)  with  its  major  commercial  partners.  At  present  it  is  one  of  the  few 
emerging  countries  to  have  an  FTA  with  the  US,  the  EU  and  Japan.  Furthermore,  it  has 
agreements  with  most  Latin  American  countries,  with  the  EFTA  countries,  and  with  Israel. 
This network of trade agreements covers a very large share of its foreign trade.  

Mexico  is  the  only  Latin  American  country  member  of  the  Organisation  for  Economic 
Cooperation and Development (OECD), which it joined in 1994. As an emerging economy, 
Mexico  plays  an  important  role  in  the  OECD  process  of  enlargement  and  enhanced 
engagement  aiming  at  bringing  other  emerging  economies  in  the  overall  Heiligendamm 
Dialogue Process. It is also an active member of the World Trade Organisation.  

Mexico’s  macroeconomic  fundamentals  are  in  order.  Its  relations  with  the  international 
financial institutions are almost a “model” in present-day Latin America. Mexico is one of the 
world’s main destinations for flows of foreign direct investment (FDI). As a recipient country, 
Mexico has the highest stocks of FDI in Latin America (174bn EUR). Moreover, Mexico is 
becoming one of the very few significant Latin American sources of FDI for third countries 
(26.7bn EUR), the main ones being the USA, the EU and selected Latin American countries.  

Mexico has gone through significant political and socio-economic changes during the last two 
decades and it has carried out an important process of modernization. However, the country 
still  faces  a  number  of  major  challenges.  In  particular,  the  country  still  has  to  tackle  a 
historical problem of inequality and unsatisfactory distribution of wealth. Moreover, a north-
south gap in growth and income has emerged over the last decades. This gap is contributing to 
generate  important  internal  and  external  migration  flows,  the  latter  mainly  directed  towards 
the  USA.  More  in  general,  the  level  of  social  cohesion  of  the  country  still  needs  to  be 
enhanced.  In  addition,  further  progress  should  be  achieved  in  areas  such  as  governance  and 
human rights protection at local level. Mexico is also facing a security problem represented by 
an aggressive wave of organized crime and rampant drug-trafficking. In the economic field, 
the main challenges are in the area of market competitiveness and competition, notably in key 
network  sectors  such  as  telecommunications,  and  in  implementing  fiscal  reforms  aimed  at 
reducing the dependence of the budget on oil revenues. 

These current problems and challenges which need to be faced by Mexico should not however 
reduce the significance of the change that the country has already undergone in the last two 
decades.  Mexico  has  grown  considerably  at  all  levels,  it  has  still  an  important  potential  to 
exploit and will increasingly be a relevant actor on the global scene. 

A major asset for Mexico in Latin America is its strategic geographic position at the boundary 
with the US. Mexico is a significant political, economic and cultural player in Latin America 
and its role in global issues is expected to grow with time. Its economy is fully integrated in 
the  NAFTA  and  the  voices  of  its  rich  culture  are  heard  throughout  Latin  America.  Mexico 
truly  forms  a  cultural,  political  and  physical  “bridge”  between  North  America  and  Latin 

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America  and  also,  to  a  certain  extent,  between  industrialized  countries  and  emerging  ones. 
Mexico's  "bridging”  position  is  one  of  its  main  assets  in  the  context  of  a  progressive 
multilateral and multicultural international community. Now that the economic weight of the 
country is increasingly evident, Mexico is becoming more assertive and is aspiring to play a 
more active role in today's rapidly changing international environment.  

This new assertiveness is an important development compared to the past, when, for historical 
and  geopolitical  reasons,  Mexico  traditionally  chose  to  adopt  a  cautious  attitude  in 
international  affairs.  However,  even  in  the  past,  Mexico  has  systematically  stressed  the 
importance  of  multilateralism  -  a  characteristic position that has become even stronger with 
time.  Mexico  has  consistently  been  an  active  and  supportive  member  of  the  UN.  It  is  the 
world's tenth largest contributor to the UN Budget. In fact, Mexico’s financial contribution to 
the UN is the biggest in Latin America and it alone accounts for  about 50%  of  the region's 
total financial contributions to the organization. 

2. 

THE EU AND MEXICO 

In  the  mid  1990s,  the  European  Union  negotiated  an  Economic  Partnership,  Political 
Coordination  and  Cooperation  Agreement  with  Mexico,  which  was  signed  in  1997  and 
entered  into  force  in  2000.  This  agreement  –  hereinafter  referred  to  as  the  “Global 
Agreement”  –  provided  a  suitable  framework  for  both  deepening  and  strengthening  EU-
Mexico  political  relations  (see  ANNEX  1)  The  Agreement  has  three  main  pillars:  political 
dialogue,  trade  and  cooperation.  It  also  allowed  the  EU  to  reinforce  its  economic  and 
commercial positions in Mexico, which had been under considerable pressure since the entry 
into force of NAFTA in 1994.  

As from late 2004, and building on the basis of growing EU-Mexico economic links, the EU 
Institutions  and  Mexico  have  decided  to  pool  their  efforts  in  order  to  intensify  high-level 
contacts. This process culminated in April 2007 when, at the EU-Mexico Joint Council, the 
parties acknowledged that a major qualitative change had occurred in their bilateral relations 
and that mutual links were much closer. During 2007 and 2008, there were a number of high-
level  official  visits  to  Mexico  by  different  EU  Member  States  and  European  Commission 
representatives, including a visit in May 2008 by the President of the European Commission. 
During  the  same  period,  President  Calderón  travelled  twice  to  Europe,  visited  a  number  of 
European capitals  and paid  a  comprehensive visit  to  the EU Institutions in Brussels  in  June 
2007. A number of Mexican ministers also carried out extensive European tours. 

Since the entry into force of the Global Agreement, and during the last few years in particular, 
the EU and Mexico have developed an active and frank political dialogue on issues of mutual 
interest. This development has generated a good atmosphere between the EU and Mexico and 
has created the political conditions for the establishment of a closer dialogue on global issues. 
In this context, the need has been felt for a wider and more ambitious political framework to 
be established between the EU and Mexico, in order to translate the political dialogue into an 
effective  instrument  for  the  coordination  of  positions  on  global  issues,  as  well  as  on  other 
issues of mutual concern, within multilateral fora and international institutions.  

Cooperation  is  one  of  the  pillars  of  the  Global  Agreement  and,  accordingly,  the  EU  and 
Mexico  are  implementing  important  and  innovative  development  cooperation  activities. 
Policy dialogues have been launched  in areas such as environment and climate  change,  and 
also social cohesion. These dialogues aim at orienting cooperation activities and, at the same 
time,  serve  as  a  major  vehicle  for  coordination  between  the  EU  and  Mexico  on  sensitive 
global issues. In fact, on the issue of climate change, Mexico has adopted positions that are 
very  close  to  those  of  the  EU.  By  the  end  of  this  year,  a  policy  dialogue  on  education  and 

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culture will most probably also be launched, building on existing programmes in the fields of 
youth,  higher  education  and  on  cooperation  instruments  recently  developed  in  the  area  of 
culture.  

Mexico’s  considerable  science  and  technology  capacity  and  the  diversity  of  its  knowledge 
fabric make it an attractive cooperation partner for Europe. Since the entry into force of the 
2004 EU/Mexico sectoral agreement on Science and Technology, scientific and technological 
cooperation between the EU and Mexico has increased considerably. In parallel, a number of 
programmes  and  initiatives  have  been  launched  in  areas  such  as  human  rights,  culture, 
development of SMEs, trade facilitation, etc. 

The progressive strengthening of EU-Mexico bilateral relations has ultimately led the EU and 
Mexico  to  clearly  identify  the  need  to  establish  closer  bilateral  political  links  and,  in 
particular,  to  establish  a  “Strategic  Partnership”.  From  Mexico’s  point  of  view,  the 
relationship  with  the  EU  is  a  vital  factor  for  political  diversification  and  balance  in  its 
international relations. 

3. 

THE RATIONALE FOR AN EU-MEXICO STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP 

There are a number of good reasons for the EU to have Mexico as a strategic partner. Mexico 
is  a  global  player,  is  active  in  the  G8  +  G5  group  and  plays  an  active  role  in  the 
“Heiligendamm  Process”1.  Its  weight  and  influence  will  probably  grow  with  time,  even 
beyond  Latin  America.  The  EU  enjoys  a  rich  bilateral  relationship  with  Mexico,  which  has 
led  to  important  results  and  achievements  in  recent  years.  Furthermore,  the  EU  shares  with 
Mexico a set of key fundamental values and enjoys close historical and cultural links. 

While the Global Agreement is a bilateral instrument with impressive potential, the strategic 
partner status is specifically intended to derive from the capacity of a partner country to exert 
a  significant  influence  on  global  issues.  Consequently,  the  European  Commission  believes 
that it is a sound policy to consider all members of the G5 group as strategic partners. 

In purely political terms, the stepping up of bilateral relations to strategic partner status would 
raise the tone and the level of the relationship and would add a new source of dynamism to 
our  cooperation.  However,  the  main  reason  for  establishing  a  strategic  partnership  with 
Mexico consists in the opportunity of further cementing our coordination in key multilateral 
fora  and  institutions.  The  Strategic  Partnership  would  signify  enhanced  EU-Mexico 
cooperation  on  global  issues.  Coordination  with  Mexico  could  turn  out  to  be  particularly 
useful if the multidimensional “bridge” characteristics of this country are taken into account. 
Mexico  has  developed  the  capacity  to  balance  OECD  perceptions  with  developing  country 
concerns,  and  this  could  indeed  be  a  useful  asset  for  reaching  consensus  at  global  level.  A 
closer  relationship  with  Mexico  could  also  facilitate  the  development  of  consensus  on  key 
regional issues between the EU and its Latin American partners.  

1 

In  Heiligendamm  the  G8  leaders  and  the  leaders  of  Brazil,  China,  India,  Mexico  and  South  Africa  - 
grouped  in  the  Outreach  5  (former  O5,  now  G5)  decided  to  initiate  a  new  form  of  a  topic-driven 
dialogue  in  a  formalized  and  structured  manner.  This  dialogue  named  since  then,  Heiligendamm 
Process  aims  at  reinforcing  common  understanding  about  crucial  areas  of  the  global  economic 
governance  and  to  develop  common  grounds  and  practical  steps  forward  in  a  joint  effort  to  better 
shape globalization. The G8 +O5 decided to deal in this dialogue process with four issues: Innovation 
and  Intellectual  Property  Rights  (promoting  and  protecting  innovation)  Investment  and  Social 
Responsibility  (promoting  cross  border  investment  and  responsible  business  conduct);  Development 
(common  understanding,  aid  effectiveness);  Energy  Efficiency  (sharing  knowledge  for  improving 
energy efficiency and technology cooperation with the aim to contribute to reducing CO2 emissions. 

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In the multilateral context, the EU and Mexico should therefore aim at developing a common 
understanding  on  global  and  regional  issues  and  jointly  take  practical  steps  in  an  effort  to 
better shape globalization. 

4. 

THE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP: A TWO-LEVEL MECHANISM 

In consideration of the above, the main objective of the Strategic Partnership will consist in 
having Mexico and the EU act as global allies in all key multilateral fora and institutions.  

In practical terms, the Strategic Partnership will have implications at two levels. First, it will 
enhance EU-Mexico coordination at the multilateral level on global issues. Secondly, it will 
lend additional political impetus to the development of bilateral relations and initiatives. 

Consequently,  the  Strategic  Partnership  will  function  on  the  basis  of  a  self-reinforcing  two-
level  mechanism:  bilateral  dialogues  and  cooperation  will  be  conducted  as  part  of  the  legal 
and operational framework of the existing agreement, and will be strengthened by the newly 
established political framework and by the dynamics that will result from it. These dialogues 
and cooperation will create proximity and facilitate exchanges among experts, civil servants 
and  policy-makers.  This,  in  turn,  will  foster  coordination  on  global  issues  in  the 
corresponding areas. 

In the new political context created by the Strategic Partnership, the EU and Mexico will have 
more opportunities to deal in depth with sensitive issues, even domestic ones. This will better 
enable the parties to pursue - with increased energy - the safeguarding of shared values, such 
as human rights, democracy, rule of law, good governance and legal security.  

5. 

THE ADDED VALUE: EU-MEXICO COORDINATION ON GLOBAL ISSUES  

The EU and Mexico already share values, perceptions and visions. From the EU perspective, 
Mexico is a “like-minded country”. In multilateral fora, Mexico on many occasions tends to 
adopt positions that are very close to those of the EU. The Strategic Partnership should help in 
further  reinforcing  this  tendency,  by  providing  a  strong  political  framework  and  thus 
enhancing dialogue and coordination between the EU and Mexico.  

The Strategic Partnership with Mexico, more than aiming at establishing a common agenda or 
at producing a specific action plan, will favour the adoption of a methodology for consultation 
and  coordination.  It  should  lead  to  the  emergence  of  a  new  mutual  sensitivity,  causing  the 
parties  to  pay  due  attention  to  their  respective  interests  and  concerns,  on  every  occasion  in 
which positions around global issues are at stake.  

On  global  issues  we  are  facing  an  evolving  agenda.  In  recent  years,  the  international 
community  has  had  to  confront  a  succession  of  issues  of  global  concern,  from  terrorism  to 
climate change, from international financial market volatility to increasing oil and food prices, 
etc.  Rather  than  simply  listing  the  areas  for  cooperation,  what  matters  at  this  stage  is  to 
cultivate the habit of consultation and coordination, to develop the reflex of taking respective 
views and concerns into account during the elaboration and adoption of positions on specific 
global  issues.  There  are  several  global  issues  on  which  the  need  for  effective  EU-Mexico 
coordination is already clearly felt and where, in various cases, some coordination is already 
being  established  under  the  existing  Agreement.  However,  for  the  reasons  explained  above, 
this  list  is  not  and  cannot  be  exhaustive.  At  present,  the  main  areas  to  be  highlighted  for 
coordination are the following: 

1.  Political  issues,  such  as  multilateralism,  democracy,  human  rights,  rule  of  law,  cultural 
dialogue, Latin America, regional integration, Rio Group; 

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2. Security issues, such as the fight against terrorism, failed states, organised crime, drug and 
human trafficking; 

3.  Environmental 
overexploitation of fish stocks;  

issues,  such  as  climate  change,  natural  disasters,  fight  against 

4. Socio-Economic issues, such as development policy, investment and social responsibility, 
innovation and intellectual property rights, open markets, social policies, decent work/social 
protection,  migration,  poverty,  global  macro-financial  stability,  good  governance  in  the  tax 
area, energy security, sustainability and improved efficiency, food prices, fisheries, maritime 
policy and ocean governance, transport issues of common interest. 

6. 

POSITIVE IMPACT ON BILATERAL ISSUES 

The  new  political  dynamism  generated  by  the  establishment  of  an  EU-Mexico  Strategic 
Partnership, is expected also to have a positive impact on specific EU-Mexico bilateral issues. 
Progress  is  to  be  expected  in  particular  in  areas  such  as  social  and  economic  cooperation, 
cooperation in human rights, cultural exchanges, cooperation in the fields of education, trade, 
competition and civil aviation. It should also help to better exploit the potential in the trade 
and investment area offered by the Global Agreement. 

7. 

INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS 

The  existing  institutional  structure  established  in  the  framework  of  the  EU-Mexico  Global 
agreement has proved itself viable and effective. Many advances have been achieved within 
this structure, which have culminated in the present good level of relations.  

The  Strategic  Partnership  should  inject  a  new  spirit  into  the  workings  of  the  existing 
framework.  The  parties  should  refrain  from  creating  additional  committees  and  structures 
unless it is really necessary. Joint Councils and Joint Committees are suitable mechanisms for 
coordination. The only changes to be introduced after the entry into force of the EU-Mexico 
Strategic Partnership would be adaptations of the agendas in order to devote additional space 
to  coordination  on  relevant  global  issues.  Furthermore,  in  order  to  ensure  continuity  and 
proper  follow-up,  a  "lean"  permanent  mechanism  of  direct  dialogue  at  senior  official  level 
should be established within the Joint Committee. The possibility should also be left open to 
call  specific  ad  hoc  coordination  meetings,  whenever  there  is  a  need  to  coordinate  the 
positions to be adopted in international fora. 

EU-Mexico  Summits  at  Presidential  level  should  continue  the  existing  practice  and  be  held 
every  two  years,  and  should  be  institutionalized.  Their  agenda  and  duration  should  be 
expanded to enable an exhaustive political dialogue to take place and to guarantee appropriate 
political coordination on the relevant issues of the moment. 

Apart  from  the  institutionalization  of  the  EU-Mexico  Summits,  the  main  change  to  be 
introduced would therefore essentially consist in the development of more frequent exchanges 
at  operational  level.  EU  and  Mexican  Ambassadors  should  adopt  the  habit  of  having  more 
frequent contacts in the host countries, even when they are posted outside Latin American or 
European regions. Ambassadors, Head of Missions and experts posted in UN capitals should 
be particularly concerned with coordination with a view to UN fora and debates. With time, 
dialogue at embassy level between diplomats and between experts on specific issues, would 
generate  more  acquaintance  and  would  be  conducive  to  the  adoption  of  a  “likeminded” 
approach  to  problems  in  the  long  run.  This  also  applies  to  contacts  and  exchanges  at  civil 
servant or expert level in the framework of the existing EU-Mexico cooperation. 

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8. 

CONCLUSION 

On the basis of the considerations and arguments presented above, the Commission therefore 
recommends  the  establishment  of  a  Strategic  Partnership  between  the  European  Union  and 
Mexico. 

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ANNEX 1 

THE EU AND MEXICO LEGAL, INSTITUTIONAL  

AND OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORK 

In  legal  terms,  bilateral  relations  are  governed  by  the  Global  Agreement,  which 
institutionalizes a regular, high-level political dialogue. Mexico and the European Union have 
two fora in which their relations can be, coordinated, monitored and given political impetus: 
the  Joint  Councils  at  Ministerial  level,  which  take  place  every  two  years  and  the  Joint 
Committees at Vice-Ministerial or senior official’s level, which are held once a year.  

Furthermore, in order to raise the political profile of their bilateral relations and to maintain 
regular  contacts  at  the  highest  level,  the  EU  and  Mexico  have  established  the  practice  of 
holding Presidential Summits every two years. 

The  EU  and  Mexico  have  also  established  an  active  inter-parliamentary  dialogue  in  the 
framework of the EU-Mexico Inter-Parliamentary Joint Committee, which meets twice a year. 

The Global Agreement has created a comprehensive free trade area between Mexico and the 
EU, covering trade both in goods and services. In the years following the entry into force of 
the Agreement, bilateral trade between the EU and Mexico grew by more than 100 %. As a 
consequence, Mexico has become one of EU’s most important commercial partners in Latin 
America, with significant growth potential. The EU is Mexico’s second trading partner after 
the USA.  

Apart  from  trade,  the  EU-Mexico  Global  Agreement  covers  a  broad  spectrum  of  economic 
issues.  EU  foreign  direct  investment  flows  have  increased  by  120%  and  the  EU  is  now  the 
second  major  investor  in  Mexico  after  the  United  States.  A  new  Framework  agreement 
between  Mexico  and  the  EIB  was  signed  in  2006  and  it  provides  the  framework  for 
cooperation in the infrastructure and environmental fields.  

In addition, the agreement contains a number of review clauses aimed at further liberalizing 
trade relations between EU and Mexico in the areas of services, investment, and agricultural 
goods.  In  November  2004,  the  Parties  agreed  to  start  negotiations  to  fulfill  these 
arrangements.  Once  these  negotiations  are  completed,  they  will  provide  a  more  dynamic 
environment for business operators and will usefully complement the existing market access 
possibilities. 

The EU and Mexico have established active development cooperation. For the period 2007-
2013, taking into account that Mexico is now an upper middle income country; an indicative 
allocation  of  €  55  million  has  been  earmarked  under  the  DCI  (Financing  Instrument  for 
Development  Cooperation).  Three  focal  sectors  of  cooperation  have  been  identified:  Social 
Cohesion;  Sustainable  Economy  and  Competitiveness;  and  Education  and  Culture.  These 
three focal sectors are tied with different cross-cutting issues to be mainstreamed, in particular 
Human  Rights,  Gender  issues  and  Environmental  issues.  Cooperation  between  EU  and 
Mexico is centered on the innovative instrument of policy dialogues and its aim is to provide 
a  qualitative  contribution  and  support  to  Mexico’s  development  through  the  exchange  and 
transfer of relevant experiences and best practices to be adapted to specific local conditions. A 
Memorandum  of  Understanding  (MoU)  was  signed  on  6  June  2007  to  enable  the 
implementation of cooperation for the period 2007-2013. 

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ANNEX 2 

Official Name: 

United States of Mexico 

Capital: 

Surface area: 

Population : 

Mexico City (Distrito Federal) 

1,972,55 km2 

105,790,725 (2007) 

Official language: 

Spanish / 56 indigenous languages 

Currency: 

Peso  

Nature of the State: 

Federal Republic  

Administrative divisions: 

31 states and 1 federal district 

Head of Government (President): 

Felipe Calderón (PAN) 

Presidential and legislative elections: 

Legislative  July  2009  - Presidential  July 
2012 

GDP per capita : 

USD 9669 (2007)  

GDP total 

GDP growth : 

Inflation  

USD 1022,93 billion 

3,2 %  

3,8 %  

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