Mexico's Importance and Multiple Relationships with the United States
Released: 2006-01-18T00:00:00

Importance of Mexico

Diplomatic Weight of Mexico

With a population of 105 million people, Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speakingcountry in the world, and the third most populous country in the Western Hemisphere (after theUnited States and Brazil). This gives it a diplomatic weight in the hemisphere as a leader of LatinAmerican countries, and in the world as a leader of developing countries. With an estimated GrossDomestic Product (GDP) for 2005 of $660 billion, and estimated worldwide turnover trade (exportsand imports) for 2005 of $455 billion, Mexico is an active member of the World Trade Organization(WTO) and a leading trader in the world, principally through its partnership with Canada and theUnited States in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). (1)

Linkages with the United States

Sharing a 2,000-mile border and extensive interconnections through the Gulf of Mexico, theUnited States and Mexico are so intricately linked together in an enormous number of ways thatPresident George W. Bush and other U.S. officials have stated that no country is more important tothe United States than Mexico. At the same time, Mexican President Vicente Fox (2000-2006), thefirst president to be elected from an opposition party in 71 years, has sought to strengthen thebilateral relationship through what some have called a "grand bargain." (2) Under this proposed bargain,the United States would regularize the status of undocumented Mexican workers in the United Statesand economically assist the less developed partner in the North American Free Trade Agreement(NAFTA) while Mexico would be more cooperative in border security and in controlling the illegaltraffic of drugs, people, and goods into the United States.

Mexico is linked with the United States through trade and investment, migration and tourism,environment and health concerns, and family and cultural relationships. Mexico is the second mostimportant trading partner of the United States, and this trade is critical to many U.S. industries andborder communities. Mexican descendants constitute 64% (or 24 million) of the growing Hispanicpopulation of 37.4 million people in the United States, with a significant presence in California andTexas and other states. Moreover, Mexico is the largest source of legal migrants to the United States(21% of the total in 2002) and by far the largest source of undocumented migrants (57% of the totalin 2004, according to estimates). It also is the principal transit or source country for illicit drugs andit is a possible avenue for the entry of terrorists into the United States. As a result, cooperation withMexico is essential in dealing with migration, drug trafficking, and border, terrorism, health,environment, and energy issues. (3)

Mexico's Role in NAFTA

In large part because of the United States, NAFTA is the world's largest free trade area, withabout one-third of the world's total GDP, accounting for about 19% of global exports and 25% ofglobal imports. Based on the volume of trade, Mexico is generally viewed as the least importantmember of NAFTA, although its population of over 100 million is more than three times that ofCanada (32 million), and its GDP is nearly equal to that of Canada ($757 billion). About 37% ofthe United States' trade with NAFTA countries is with Mexico, and 63% is with Canada.

Under NAFTA, Mexico's estimated total turnover trade (exports and imports) with the UnitedStates for 2005 was $289 billion, making it the second most important trading partner of the UnitedStates (following Canada), while the United States is Mexico's most important partner by far,providing the market for 88% of Mexico's exports and supplying 62% of Mexico's imports. SinceNAFTA entered into force in 1994, total trilateral trade has more than doubled to $621 billion in2004, while Mexico-U.S. trade more than tripled from $82 billion to $266 billion, although theUnited States has experienced a generally growing trade deficit. U.S. foreign direct investment wasencouraged by NAFTA as well, although in recent years the amount and proportion of U.S.investment flows has declined from $20.4 billion (77% of total investment) in 2001 to $10.7 billion(56% of total) in 2003 as total worldwide investment declined. (4)

Mexico's Role in Latin America and the Caribbean

As one of the major countries in the region, Mexico has historically played an important rolein Latin America and the Caribbean as a strong defender of the principles of non-intervention andself determination, particularly in the hemispheric Organization of American States (OAS). Thisstance put it at odds with the United States on policies toward Cuba since the 1960s and towardNicaragua in the 1980s, although it cooperated fully with the United States in the Summits of theAmericas process in the 1990s. Under President Fox, Mexico has sought to strengthen hemisphericrelations. The President has promoted the so-called Puebla-Panama Plan, which promotescooperative development efforts among the Central American countries and the southeastern statesof Mexico. He has revived the G-3 group (Colombia, Venezuela, and Mexico), has indicated theintent to become an associate member of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) countries inSouth America, and is implementing free trade agreements with 10 countries in Central and SouthAmerica. In the OAS context, Mexico has been a strong advocate for the Inter-AmericanConvention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, the MultilateralEvaluation Mechanism of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD), and therevision and updating of hemispheric security concepts after it formally withdrew from the RioTreaty collective security mechanism. In October 2003, it hosted a Hemispheric Security Conferencein Mexico City that adopted a new multi-dimensional approach, and in January 2004 it hosted aSpecial Summit of the Americas in Monterrey with emphasis on democracy and social issues. (5)

Mexico's Linkages to Europe, Asia and the World

While Mexico is strongly linked to the United States and to Latin America, it has importantties to Europe and Asia as well, and has been a member of the Organization of EconomicCooperation and Development (OECD) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forumsince the early 1990s. In addition, it is a regular participant in the Rio Group, the Ibero-AmericanConference, and the Latin America and Caribbean-European Union summits. Particularly underPresident Fox, Mexico has pursued an even more activist global foreign policy, with greater involvement in United Nations (U.N.) and Organization of American States (OAS) activities. Mexican officials are seeking to expand trade with the European Union under the EU-Mexico FreeTrade Agreement that went into effect in July 2000, and they signed a free trade agreement withJapan in 2004. Mexico held a temporary seat on the U.N. Security Council in 2002 and 2003 andexpressed support for continuing diplomatic efforts under United Nations auspices to achieve thedisarmament of Iraq, leading to expressions of disappointment from the Bush Administration andsome tension in the bilateral relationship. Under Fox, the country has been open to internationalhuman rights monitors and has played a stronger role in the United Nations Human RightsCommission, at times voting for resolutions critical of Cuba. On December 1, 2004, MexicanForeign Minister Derbez launched a bid for Mexico to have a permanent seat on the U.N. SecurityCouncil, placing it in competition with Brazil to represent Latin America in a still-to-be-approvedenlarged Security Council.

Mexico as Host to Regional and International Meetings

In recent years, Mexico has hosted a number of important U.N. and OAS meetings. In March2002, it hosted the U.N. Conference on Financing and Development in Monterrey where PresidentBush announced the Millennium Challenge Account. In September 2003, Mexico hosted the WTOMinisterial in Cancun that collapsed without agreement despite the efforts of Foreign MinisterDerbez to achieve consensus between developing and developed countries to advance the DohaRound of global trade talks. In October 2003, it hosted a Hemispheric Security Conference inMexico City that adopted a multi-dimensional approach to transnational threats, and in January 2004it hosted a Special Summit of the Americas in Monterrey to refocus the Summit process on theadvancement of democracy and economic growth and the reduction of poverty and inequality in theregion.

Mechanisms for Mexico-United States Interactions

The United States and Mexico have developed a variety of mechanisms for consultation andcooperation on the wide variety of issues on which they interact, with some overlapping in thefunctioning of the various fora. Grouped together to some extent by function and longevity, thesemechanisms include (1) periodic presidential meetings; (2) annual cabinet-level BinationalCommission meetings with 10 Working Groups; (3) annual meetings of congressional delegationsin the Mexico-United States Interparliamentary Group Conferences; (4) NAFTA-related trilateralmeetings under various groups; (5) bilateral border area cooperation meetings hosted by such entitiesas the Border Environment Cooperation Commission (BECC) and the United States-Mexico BorderHealth Commission; and (6) trilateral meetings under the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP)of North America, launched in March 2005.

Periodic Presidential Meetings

Presidents Bush and Fox have met on a regular basis and have discussed a range of issues,at times in specially arranged bilateral meetings and state visits, and at other times at the margins ofmultilateral meetings. In 2001, the Presidents met in mid-February in Guanajuato, Mexico atPresident Fox's ranch where they launched bilateral immigration talks; in mid-April in Quebec,Canada during a Summit of the Americas meeting; in early May in Washington, D.C., in earlySeptember in the Washington, D.C. on an official state visit where migration issues figuredprominently again; and in early October in New York when President Fox expressed solidarity withthe United States following the terrorist attacks. In 2002, the Presidents met in March in Monterrey,Mexico, following the U.N. Conference on Financing and Development; and in October in LosCabos, Mexico, at the APEC summit. In 2003, the Presidents met in October, in Bangkok,Thailand, at the APEC summit, where they reaffirmed the desire to continue bilateral immigrationtalks. In 2004, the Presidents met in January, in Monterrey, Mexico, at the time of the SpecialSummit of the Americas; in March at President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, where theydiscussed President Bush's January 2004 immigration proposal; and in late November in Santiago,Chile at another APEC summit following President Bush's re-election, where immigration issueswere broached again. In 2005, the Presidents met in March in Texas, along with Prime MinisterMartin of Canada, and launched the trilateral "Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) of NorthAmerica." (6)

Annual Cabinet-Level Binational Commission Meetings

Functioning since 1981, the United States-Mexico Binational Commission, with practicallyunparalleled cabinet-level participation, meets yearly, alternating between Mexico and the UnitedStates, with high level consultation on the full range of bilateral topics through a number ofassociated Working Groups. The Binational Commission meeting scheduled for October 2005 wascancelled because Mexican officials were dealing with Hurricane Wilma in the Yucatan region ofMexico, but Mexican Foreign Minister Derbez visited Washington, D.C. on October 26, 2005, forofficial meetings. Many of the relevant agencies in both countries had been interacting with eachother in the context of the March 2005 launch of the trilateral "Security and Prosperity Partnershipof North America," and the June 2005 reports to the three North American leaders on the initialaccomplishments and plans for the trilateral partnership.

At the Binational Commission meeting held in November 2004, in Mexico City, theWorking Groups reviewed regular activities throughout the year and announced agreements. (7) The Working Groups (withagency representatives indicated) as then constituted were: (1) Foreign Policy (U.S. Department ofState and Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs); (8) (2) Migration and Consular Affairs (U.S. Departments of State andHomeland Security and Mexican Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Government); (3) HomelandSecurity and Border Cooperation (U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security and MexicanMinistries of Foreign Affairs and Government); (4) Law Enforcement and Counter-Narcotics (Chaired by U.S. and Mexican Attorneys General) with reference to the more frequent Senior LawEnforcement Plenary (SLEP) meetings; (5) Trade and Agriculture (U.S. and Mexican Ministries ofTrade and Agriculture); (6) Labor (U.S. and Mexican Ministries of Labor); (7) Education (U.S. andMexican Ministries of Education); (8) Environment (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)and Mexican Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT); (8) Housing (U.S.Department of Housing and Urban Development and Mexican Commission of Housing); (9) Transportation (U.S. Department of Transportation and Mexican Ministry of Communication andTransportation); and (10) Energy (U.S. and Mexican Ministries of Energy) that met in the summer. A report on the related public-private Partnership for Prosperity (P4P) launched by Presidents Bushand Fox in September 2001 to promote development in Mexico, particularly in areas with highout-migration rates, was also made at the meeting.

At the conclusion of the November 2004 Binational Commission meetings, Secretary of StateColin Powell, summarizing the accomplishments, emphasized the growing bilateral cooperation oncounter-narcotics and border security matters between the countries, including the creation of a newWorking Group on Cyber-Security. He also noted the conclusion of educational agreements that willadvance Mexican competitiveness, housing agreements to strengthen the local mortgage market,agricultural agreements to advance cooperation on rural development programs, and environmentalagreements to promote environmental conservation.

With regard to the accomplishments of the Partnership for Prosperity (P4P), Secretary Powellnoted that these programs had lowered the fees for transferring funds from the United States toMexico, brought together more than 1400 business and government leaders from both countries, anddeveloped innovative methods to finance infrastructure projects. Other accomplishments were theestablishment for the first time of a Peace Corps program in Mexico, and the recent establishmentof the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) in Mexico that is expected to provide over$600 million in financing and insurance to U.S. businesses in Mexico. (9)

Annual Mexico-United States Interparliamentary Conferences

Beginning in 1961, legislators from Mexico and the United States have met once a year todiscuss the full range of bilateral topics, alternating between Mexico and the United States. (10) During the latestinterparliamentary meeting, the 44th in the long series, in early June 2005, in Newport, Rhode Island,the delegates focused on immigration and security, commerce and competitiveness, criminal justice,and the new trilateral "Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America." Mexican delegatesurged U.S. enactment of a comprehensive immigration reform and action to strengthen Mexico'seconomy, while pointing out that Mexican policymakers were increasingly recognizing the migrationphenomenon as a two way street and were adopting measures like the "3 for 1" program under whichcommunity contributions from Mexicans abroad are matched by the federal, state, and municipalgovernments to encourage their return to Mexico. U.S. delegates urged the Mexican legislators tostrengthen their agricultural sector and to open their energy sector to investment to promotedevelopment and to create jobs for Mexicans within the country. They also called upon Mexicanpolicymakers to better control their southern border with Guatemala, and to extradite suspectswanted for murdering U.S. police officers. Delegates from both countries praised the trilateral"Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) of North America" launched in March 2005 to advanceregional cooperation and competitiveness.

NAFTA-Related Trilateral Trade Organizations

Functioning since 1994 when the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) betweenCanada, Mexico, and the United States went into effect, these trilateral institutions provide themechanisms for interaction on trade and trade-related issues.

NAFTA Commissions, Secretariat, and WorkingGroups. The NAFTA agreement of 1993 established a variety of commissions andworking groups. The central institution is the NAFTA Free Trade Commission, consisting of thetrade ministers of each county, which meets annually or when required. For the United States, theappropriate representative is the United States Trade Representative (USTR). Implementation ofNAFTA is carried out by more that 25 committees, with representation from the Departments ofState, Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Transportation, and Treasury as well as agencies such as theSmall Business Administration (SBA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), dependingon the issue. The NAFTA agreement required each of the countries to have a permanent NAFTASecretariat to assist the NAFTA Commission and to administer the NAFTA dispute resolutionprocedures. In the case of the United States, the NAFTA Secretariat is located in the Departmentof Commerce's International Trade Administration. (11)

At the most recent meeting of the NAFTA Free Trade Commission in San Antonio, Texas,on July 16, 2004, the three trade ministers issued a joint statement hailing "a decade of achievement"under NAFTA, and committing to "deepening economic integration in North America." They alsopledged to achieve meaningful progress on the WTO Doha Development Agenda, and on Free TradeArea of the Americas (FTAA) talks. (12)

Commission for Environmental Cooperation(CEC). Established by the trilateral North American Agreement on EnvironmentalCooperation (NAAEC) of 1993, a companion side agreement to NAFTA, the Commission wasformed to strengthen environmental cooperation between the United States, Mexico, and Canada,and to consider complaints of non-compliance with environmental law brought by variousnon-governmental groups. The Commission is governed by a Council composed of the environmentministers (or alternative representatives ) from each of the three countries, who receive outside inputfrom National Advisory Committees, Governmental Advisory Committees and the Joint PublicAdvisory Committee (JPAC). At the most recent Commission meeting, on June 22, 2005, theMinisters adopted the Strategic Plan 2005-2010 for cooperating on environmental protection matters. More recently, the Commission, in November 2005, issued the first ever trinational conservationplans for six wildlife species, and in December 2005, made public the factual record developed inresponse to a Mexican non-governmental organization's complaint that Mexico was failing toenforce environmental laws in the Sierra Tarahumara. (13)

Commission for Labor Cooperation (CLC). Created by the trilateral North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC) of 1993,another NAFTA side agreement, the Commission was established to encourage cooperation on labormatters and to consider complaints of non-compliance with labor law lodged by non-governmentalorganizations. The Commission is governed by a Council of Ministers composed of the ministersof labor of each of the countries, with assistance from a trinational Secretariat and independentEvaluation Committees of Experts. The agreement requires each government to establish its ownNational Administrative Office (NAO), which in the case of the United States is located in theDepartment of Labor. At the Seventh Ministerial Meeting in November 2003, the ministers praisedthe cooperative advances in the labor area and announced the release of a major report on NorthAmerican labor markets and a guide to the rights of migrant workers. (14) In other recent action, inNovember 2004 the Mexican Secretary of Labor agreed to ministerial consultation with the U.S.Secretary of Labor following a hearing and report on a non-governmental complaint of failure toenforce labor rights in two garment factories in Puebla, Mexico. In 2005, non-governmental groupsalso filed submissions alleging violation of the labor rights of Mexican pilots and Mexican textileworkers in the state of Hidalgo. (15)

North American Energy Working Group(NAEWG). Created in the spring of 2001 by the energy ministers of Canada,Mexico, and the United States, the mission of the trilateral NAEWG is to foster communication andcooperation among the governments and energy sectors of the three countries on energy-relatedmatters, and to enhance energy trade between the countries while respecting domestic jurisdictions. Working Group experts have issued four reports, the first on the general energy picture in June 2002,the second on energy efficiency standards in December 2002, the third on regulation of internationalelectricity trade in December 2002, and the fourth on the North American Natural Gas Vision inJanuary 2005. (16)

U.S.-Mexico Senior Law Enforcement Plenary (SLEP) and Regular Meetings of Attorneys General

Working in conjunction with the Working Group on Law Enforcement andCounter-Narcotics Matters of the Binational Commission (see above), the Senior Law EnforcementPlenary (SLEP) is an annual meeting of senior law enforcement officials from both countries wherethey discuss cooperation on law enforcement and counter-narcotics matters. The SLEP andBinational Commission meetings are supplemented by regular meetings between the U.S. andMexican Attorneys General, and by cooperation among the border states Attorneys General. WhenU.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales met with Mexican Attorney General Daniel Cabeza de Vacaon October 13, 2005, in San Antonio, Texas, they announced training and intelligence sharinginitiatives to combat narcotics-related violence on the border, particularly in the area of NuevoLaredo, Mexico. (17)

Border Area Cooperation Organizations and Meetings

A wide variety of Mexico-United States binational organizations meet on a regular basis todeal primarily with the problems of the areas on both sides of the common border.

International Boundary and Water Commission(IBWC). Created by treaties of 1889 and 1944, the International Boundary andWater Commission is a binational governmental organization charged with the task of identifyingand solving boundary and water problems arising along the 2,000 mile border between Mexico andthe United States. There is a U.S. section of the Commission in El Paso, Texas, and a Mexicansection in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, with each side funding its own section. In recent action, inNovember 2005, the IBWC sponsored a binational summit of stakeholders to developrecommendations for the sustainable development of the Rio Grande Basin, and in December 2005,the U.S. section adopted an Environmental Management System to ensure the integration ofenvironmental considerations into day-to-day decisions. (18)

Border Environment Cooperation Commission(BECC). Established under the North American Free Trade Agreement of 1993,the Border Environment Cooperation Commission is a joint U.S.-Mexico international organizationwith a mandate to assist border communities in developing environmental infrastructure projects,and to certify the feasibility of these projects for the purpose of receiving loans from the sisterinstitution, the North American Development Bank (NADBank). The BECC is governed by a Boardof Directors, with members from U.S. and Mexican public and private sectors, and is located inCiudad Juarez, Chihuahua. In 2004, the mandate of the BECC and NADBank were expanded toinclude communities in Mexico up to 300 kilometers from the border, and to establish a joint Boardof Directors for both institutions. Funding for the U.S. side comes from the InternationalCommissions section of the Department of State appropriation in the Commerce, State, JusticeAppropriations. The BECC has also received funds directly from the U.S. Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) and Mexico's Ministry of Social Development (SEDESOL), and has provided morethan $30.2 million to aid in the development of 230 water, sewage, and municipal waste projects in131 communities on both sides of the border. Since the establishment of the BECC, it has certified105 environmental infrastructure projects for funding in Mexico and the United States worth $2.4billion. (19)

North American Development Bank (NADBank). Established under the North American Free Trade Agreement of 1993, the North AmericanDevelopment Bank is an international financial institution established and capitalized in equal partsby the United States and Mexico for the purpose of financing environmental projects along theborder. It is located in San Antonio, Texas. As indicated above, in 2004, the geographical mandateof the NADBank was expanded to cover Mexican communities up to 300 kilometers from theborder. U.S. funding for the NADBank comes from the Multilateral Development Banks section ofthe Foreign Operations Appropriations. By the end of FY2005, the NADBank had authorized 24loans for border environmental projects totaling $105 million. The NADBank also administers theBorder Environment Infrastructure Fund (BEIF) with funds directly from the EPA's Border Fund. By the end of FY2005, $516 million in BEIF grants have been committed for 54 water andwastewater projects along the border. (20)

United States-Mexico Border Health Commission(USMBHC). Created as a binational health commission by an agreement in July2000 by the ministers of health in each country, the commission members include the federalsecretaries of health, the chief health officers of the six border states in Mexico and the four borderstates in the United States, and prominent health professionals from both countries. TheCommission seeks to provide a mechanism for coordinated action to improve health and the qualityof life at the border. The Commission receives funding from the United States and Mexico, with theU.S. contribution coming from appropriations for the Office of Global Health Affairs, Departmentof Health and Human Services. In March 2001, the Commission established a ten-year binationalagenda of health promotion and disease prevention known as Healthy Border 2010 with 20objectives in 11 focus areas. The 11 focus areas include seeking to improve access to health careand immunization, and seeking to reduce the incidence of cancer, diabetes, asthma, HIV/AIDS, andsuicide. (21)

U.S.-Mexico Border Environmental Program -- Border2012. Following up on the La Paz agreement in 1983, the Border XXI program in1996, and the New Border Vision in 1997 and 1998, Border 2012 is a 10-year set of binational goalsto protect and advance public health and environmental conditions in the U.S.-Mexico border region. It brings together EPA, HHS, Mexico's environment and health ministries, the U.S. border tribes,and the environmental agencies from each of the ten U.S.-Mexico border states. EPA takes the leadin Border 2012, but the initiative is said to emphasize a bottom-up approach, with four regionallyfocused workgroups to maximize the participation of local communities in efforts to reduce air, land,and water pollution. (22) Participants in Border 2012 efforts work closely with the International Boundary and WaterCommission (IBSC), the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC), theBorder Environment Cooperation Commission (BECC) and the North American Development Bank(NADBank). (23)

Mexico-U.S. Border Partnership. The bilateralBorder Partnership ("Smart Border") Agreement was launched in March 2002, with the stated goalof balancing security enhancement with transit enhancement. It sought to utilize advancedtechnology to strengthen screening infrastructure at the border in order to facilitate the transit ofpeople and goods across the border. When Mexico's Secretary of Government Santiago Creel metwith Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff in May 2005 to assess progress under thepartnership, they focused on the six new Secure Electronic Network for Traveler's Rapid Inspection(SENTRI) lanes for pre-screened, low-risk individuals, and the eight new Free and Secure Trade(FAST) lanes for pre-cleared cargo. They also focused on the coming repatriation of Mexicannationals in accordance with the 2004 U.S.-Mexico Action Plan for Cooperation and Border Safetyand the joint 2004 Memorandum of Understanding on the secure, orderly, dignified, and humanerepatriation of Mexican nationals. (24)

Border Liaison Mechanisms (BLMs). Developedin recent years, the BLMs are regularly scheduled meetings that are held in each of the ten clustersof "sister cities" along the Mexico-U.S. border, with chairmanship of the meeting alternatingbetween the U.S. and Mexican Consul Generals. The purpose of the meetings is to exchange viewsand develop solutions to pressing border problems, including transportation, law enforcement, andpublic safety issues, with those attending the meetings including representatives from relevantfederal, state, and local agencies from both countries. In August 2005, for example, U.S. officialsmet with Mexican officials in the BLM for the New Mexico-Chihuahua region. (25)

Binational Group on Bridges and BorderCrossings. This binational group was created in 1983, but since 1989 it has oftenbeen held as part of the Binational Commission meetings. It is generally attended by representativesof the ministries responsible for foreign affairs, treasury, transportation, immigration, and security,including officials in charge of the bridges and border crossings. Interested citizens and businessmenoften attend as well. The 35th meeting of the binational group met May 2-4, 2005, in Reynosa,Mexico, and agreed to advance cooperation to modernize the bridges and crossing points in that areain keeping with the Border Partnership announced by Presidents Fox and Bush in March 2002 andthe commitments during the Binational Commission meetings in November 2004. (26)

Border States Conferences. Operating since1980, the Border Governors Conference brings together on an annual basis the governors of the tenborder states (six Mexican states and four U.S. states) to discuss the many issues affecting theborder. (27) In additionto this comprehensive conference, there are direct state-to-state versions: (1) the Cuatro Caminos(Four Paths) Conference between Texas and neighboring states (Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Coahuilaand Chihuahua); (2) the Commission of the Californias (California and Baja California); (3) theSonora-Arizona Commission; and (4) the Chihuahua-New Mexico Commission.

Gulf of Mexico States Accord. Established in1995, this is an agreement among the eleven U.S. and Mexican states (six Mexican states and fiveU.S. states) bordering the Gulf of Mexico that is facilitating trade and cooperation between the twocountries. This organization views the Gulf of Mexico as a "trade superhighway," as a "borderwithout bridges," that promoted, for example, the shipment of Daimler-Chrysler vehiclesmanufactured in Mexico from Tampico, Mexico, to Tampa, Florida in less time than using landroutes. Other initiatives include promoting environmental standards in the Gulf area, encouragingbinational university exchanges, and advancing private sector cooperation under the Gulf of MexicoPartnership. (28)

Trilateral Meetings under the "Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) of North America"

On March 23, 2005, President Bush hosted a meeting in Texas with President Fox and PrimeMinister Martin, in which the leaders established the trilateral "Security and Prosperity Partnership(SPP) of North America." The new partnership seeks to advance the security and prosperity of thecountries, under a conception that is trilateral, but that will allow any two countries to move forwardon an issue, and create a path for the third country to join later. The initiative is to complement, notreplace, existing bilateral and trilateral fora. To implement this partnership the leaders establishedMinisterial-led working groups that were instructed to develop measurable and achievable goals topromote security and prosperity and to report back to the leaders within 90 days and semi-annuallythereafter. For the United States, the Department of Homeland Security is the lead agency on theworking group on security, and the Department of Commerce is the lead agency on the workinggroup on prosperity, along with representation by the Department of State. (29)

On June 27, 2005, Secretary of Homeland Security Chertoff and Secretary of CommerceGutierrez met with their Canadian and Mexican counterparts in Ottawa, Canada, and released aReport to Leaders with initial results and proposed initiatives for the future under the Security andProsperity Partnership (SPP) of North America. (30)

In the security area, the report discussed efforts to establish common approaches to securityto protect against external and internal threats and to further streamline legitimate trade and travel. Among these efforts, the countries would implement common border security and bioprotectionstrategies, enhance infrastructure protection and emergency response plans, improve aviation andmaritime security and intelligence cooperation against transnational threats, and continue to facilitatethe legitimate flow of people and cargo at the borders. In the press conference, the ministershighlighted the agreement to develop and implement common methods of screening individuals andcargo, development of a unified trusted traveler program to expand upon the SENTRI and FASTprograms, and development of a collective approach to protecting infrastructure and responding tovarious incidents.

In the prosperity area, the report discussed efforts to enhance North Americancompetitiveness and to improve the quality of life. To achieve this, the countries would improveproductivity through regulatory cooperation and harmonization; enhance cross-border cooperationon health, food safety, and environmental protection projects; promote sectoral collaboration inenergy, transportation, and financial services; and reduce the costs of trade by increasing theefficiency of the cross-border operations. In press statements, the ministers cited agreement oncommon principles for electronic commerce, liberalization of the rules of origin on householdappliances and machinery, streamlining and harmonizing regulatory processes, and collaboration inthe steel, automotive and energy sectors to enhance competitiveness.