Vice President Harris Visit
June 15, 2021
Institutional context
One of the main tasks of an American Vice President (VP) is to represent the United States’ interests in forein policy. The last visit to Mexico by an American Vice President took place in 2016, with former Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto and former American Vice President Joe Biden. This visit served to strengthen the ties between two nations with shared economies, security and history. VP Harris’ visit was a diplomatic effort to renew the binational partnership.
Concrete commitments from the visit
High-Level Economic Dialogue (HLED): Both nations agreed to hold a HLED in September, fulfilling the American and Mexican Presidents’ commitment on March 1 to revive this key dialogue mechanism for bilateral economic cooperation and collaboration. The proposed agenda will cover themes, such as trade facilitation, telecommunications and interconnectivity, and supply chain resiliency.
Cabinet-Level Security Dialogue: The U.S. and Mexico agreed to hold a cabinet-level security dialogue to discuss a shared vision for security. Both nations are committed to working together to reduce homicides and drug-related deaths on both sides of the border and battle the illicit forces that drive them.
Strengthen Labor Cooperation: The U.S. will invest an additional $130 million in technical assistance and cooperation over the next three years to work with Mexico as it implements labor legislation and to fund programs that will support workers, improve working conditions, and address child and forced labor. President Lopez Obrador signed historic labor reform legislation into law on May 1, 2019.
Work Together To Address Root Causes of Migration in Central America: Both governments signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a strategic partnership to address the lack of economic opportunities in northern Central America. The two governments will work together to foster agricultural development and youth empowerment programs in Central America.
Operations Group on Human Smuggling and Human Trafficking: U.S. and Mexican law enforcement agencies will partner to exchange information and take appropriate actions to address the shared priority of disabling human trafficking and human smuggling organizations.
Attract Investment to Southern Mexico: The U.S. government developed a package of grants, loans, and other commitments that will help generate broad-based growth in southern Mexico, create jobs and reduce economic inequality in the region, by strengthening rural value chains such as cacao, coffee, and eco-tourism.
Partnership to Resolve Disappearances Cases in Mexico: The United States and Mexico will work to expand forensic capacity and partnerships to help solve the more than 82,000 cases of missing persons and disappearances in Mexico.
