Is someone going to moderate, or straight to it? Yes. Good afternoon, everyone.
I thank the presence of the Prime Minister of Canada at the National Palace, in Mexico. We had an excellent day of many meetings, and I now pass the word to Minister Carney so that he may address us. Afterwards, it will be my turn, and then we will answer your questions.
Thank you very much, Madam President. Thank you for the honor of receiving myself and my ministerial colleagues, our delegation here. The hospitality, the quality of the conversations, and the spirit of action have been tremendous. I have to say I'm not surprised. When I was hosting the G7 earlier this year, my first invitation to a leader was to President Sheinbaum, as a reflection of the importance of the Canadian-Mexican relationship, but also the value of your leadership in your council. You did not disappoint at that meeting, and we all took many lessons from your words.
I would like to thank you again for the incredible soccer ball that you gave to me in Canada. It's a remarkable piece of art whose beautiful beadwork represents the inclusivity of indigenous peoples and the interconnectedness of communities and nations.
My invitation to President Sheinbaum reflects the essential role of Mexico and its growing impact on a global economy in full transformation, as well as an immediate opportunity to begin strengthening the solid and historic friendship between Canada and Mexico.
After all, Canada and Mexico have had diplomatic ties for over 80 years. We have had free trade between our economies for over 30, and that partnership has improved the livelihoods of our workers and their families and helped make North America the economic envy of the world. Not just our economies, but North America, the economic envy of the world. And we are both committed to our shared partnership with the United States, and we look forward to using the upcoming review of T-MEC, USMCA, KZMA — different acronyms for the same thing — to find ways to make it fairer and more effective.
Bilaterally, Canada and Mexico complement each other's strengths, and we stand united in times of challenge and crisis. We're acting to protect our communities against the scourge of fentanyl, and we help each other when disaster strikes. And I want to take this opportunity, on behalf of all Canadians, to personally thank you, Madam President, and the Mexican people for the support that Mexican firefighters gave to Canada this summer in our prairie provinces and Manitoba, saving Canadian lives, protecting their communities. Thank you.
Now, over those three decades, we've reinforced our trading relationship. We've enabled our businesses to build more together, created new jobs for our citizens, and created resources, social and sustainability.
And now, the global economy is going through a period of profound change. Supply chains are fragmenting. Capital is moving in search of safe and durable returns. Climate change represents a daily crisis for businesses, workers, and communities.
At this hinge moment, Canada is deepening our relationships with our longstanding partners — partners that share our values and aspire to a better, fairer, and more sustainable world. Mexico is central to those missions, and our agreement today will expand and deepen that partnership so that the next 30 years hold even greater promise than the last 30 years have delivered.
Today we're beginning a new era of elevated cooperation with a comprehensive strategic partnership. We will scale up our engagement in foreign affairs, in trade and investment, in energy.
This means closer collaboration and faster results in priority sectors to grow our economies. Partnership, action, prosperity, security, inclusivity — it's our blueprint to build together.
So for prosperity, we will prioritize the development of strategic infrastructure, including ports, rail, trade and energy corridors. We will unlock new opportunities for trade and investment, from energy to agriculture to aerospace. We will collaborate bilaterally and with the United States to reinforce the strong foundations of our economic integration and our regulatory cooperation, with a view to making North America remain the most competitive region in the world.
And we will strengthen the integration of our agrofood value chains and increase bilateral trade in safe and secure agricultural products. We will also strengthen our model of controlled and predictable labor migration to meet the unique needs in agriculture, seafood, and processing sectors.
As part of our new action plan, we will create a new bilateral security dialogue to combat transnational organized crime, human smuggling, and cybercrime. To promote inclusivity and wellbeing, we will work together to foster economies grounded in fair, safe, and equitable work environments, and will enhance cooperation in health policy, including addressing health insecurity, infectious diseases, and substance abuse.
Both President Sheinbaum and I, and our citizens, have long recognized that addressing climate change is both a moral duty and a commercial imperative. And accordingly, Canada and Mexico will deepen our cooperation in climate and conservation, with action to protect wildlife, reduce emissions, and sustainably manage our freshwater resources. We will explore cooperation opportunities in emissions reductions, investments in renewables, and the development of smart grids.
Now, it's a long list, but it's a subset of what we intend to do. So our ministers and our officials will begin straight away. For example, our Minister of Agriculture and Agrifood will visit Mexico next month to discuss those opportunities in agricultural trade. Minister LeBlanc will lead a trade mission to Mexico shortly thereafter to build on immediate opportunities in trade and investment. And of course, in nine months, the world's game will come to our continent.
Canada, Mexico, and the United States co-hosting the World Cup. 48 nations, 16 cities, millions of fans, the biggest tournament in history. Now, it's a little new for Canada. For Mexico, it's a return to greatness — your third time hosting the World Cup after two tournaments filled with iconic moments: Pele lifting the Jules Rimet trophy in the Azteca, Maradona scoring one of the two goals of the century in '86, the hand of God scoring the other. The economic boost from the World Cup will go far beyond the field.
And culture, showcased on the world's biggest stage. And in a divided world, we can be united by the love of the beautiful game.
Canada will appoint a Secretary of State for Sport to support cooperation and coordination with Mexico and the United States ahead of the World Cup.
Let me conclude just by observing what's obvious, what's essential. We are both undertaking massive transformations of our economy. Plan Mexico, Canada strong. Our efforts will be strengthened by working together.
As President Sheinbaum said at the G7 summit, and I quote: 'In an interdependent world, no country can isolate itself.' And as your predecessor, one of your predecessors, Benito Juárez said: 'Entre los individuos como entre las naciones, el respeto al derecho ajeno es la paz.' Among individuals as amongst nations, respect for the rights of others is peace. And by balancing this respect for sovereignty and the belief in cooperation, we can build our future together. Thank you very much.
I want to thank the presence of the Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, in our country, as well as the delegation accompanying him. I also extend a very special recognition to his wife Diana, whose presence today in Mexico is for us a source of great joy and a symbol of the esteem that unites our nations. It has been an honor to receive you at the National Palace and to hold a working meeting that reflects the spirit of friendship, respect, and cooperation that characterizes the relationship between Mexico and Canada.
Today we have made very important progress. We had a first meeting between Minister Carney and myself, then a meeting with our teams, and finally a meeting with Canadian businesspeople and Mexican businesspeople. We agreed on a very important action plan that we hope will yield results very soon in terms of our bilateral relationship, but also of the relationship we have as North American countries with the trade agreement.
This action plan will allow us to coordinate our efforts in a broader and more structured way across different areas of the bilateral relationship. This action plan opens a new stage in which we further strengthen the economic, social, and cultural ties that unite us.
In the meeting we held and the agreement we have reached, we agreed on a series of visions and joint work. First, evidently, we agreed on strengthening the Mexico-United States-Canada trade agreement, which has brought much prosperity to the three countries of North America. This agreement has not only increased trade and investment opportunities, but has also generated better-paid jobs, more solid supply chains, and more competitive markets.
I fully agree that we are the most important region in economic terms in the world. The T-MEC is proof that when we work together — Mexico, Canada, and the United States — we can create prosperity, successfully face global challenges, and position ourselves as one of the most dynamic regions in the world.
With Canada, we want to move toward an even more dynamic and balanced relationship that opens new opportunities for businesses, drives innovation, and generates shared wellbeing.
We also discussed the agreement we have for the workers who go to the fields of Canada, in order to maintain it. We also reaffirmed our commitment to educational, cultural, scientific, and innovation cooperation, particularly in areas of technological innovation and the training of young people who represent the future of our nations.
We talked about the importance of close collaboration in matters of security, with full respect for our sovereignties, but with collaboration in different areas that allows us to face regional challenges together.
We celebrate — I didn't say this in the meeting, Prime Minister Carney, but I'll mention it here — we celebrate the constant growth of Canadian tourism to Mexico. We are glad that more and more families and visitors from Canada choose our country as a destination, and we express our willingness to continue facilitating this dynamic that strengthens the human, cultural, and economic ties between our societies.
I am convinced that this action plan strengthens the trade agreement of the three countries of North America and will very soon translate into direct benefits for our societies: more investment opportunities, more quality jobs, more innovation, more social justice, and more prosperity.
The relationship between our countries is not only institutional or commercial, but also deeply human. We are united by migrant families, students, indigenous communities that share roots and traditions, as well as the commitment of both peoples to peace, equity, and international solidarity.
I want to express, on behalf of the people of Mexico, our gratitude for the willingness of Prime Minister Carney to strengthen this relationship and to continue building a common future that honors our friendship. We trust that the agreements reached today will have continuity and will bear concrete fruit in the short term. Mexico and Canada will continue walking together with mutual respect and with the certainty that cooperation is the path to overcome any challenge of our time. Thank you very much.
If you would help us take the questions.
Hello, Laurence Martin from Radio-Canada. Mr. Carney, I'm going to ask you to answer in French and in English. You say that you will coordinate your efforts closely in view of the review of the Canada-United States-Mexico agreement. What does that concretely mean? And are you each committing not to exclude the other and to sign an agreement only with Mr. Trump? And in Spanish: You say you are going to collaborate in the review of the T-MEC. What does that concretely mean? And does Mexico commit not to sign a treaty without Canada? Thank you very much.
I will begin. Thank you for your question, Ms. Martin. We start with the fact that the region, as the President just said, the North American economic region is the most competitive region in the world. There are several reasons for this, but one of the reasons is the cooperation between the United States, Mexico, and Canada, and between Canada and Mexico. So we are stronger together, first of all. Secondly, we have an agreement today, an action plan that will complement the CUSMA — that's T-MEC in Spanish — and I am confident, I believe the President is also, that we can find some adjustments to the CUSMA that will reinforce the competitiveness of this region, of Mexico, and of Canada, and obviously of the United States at the same time.
Sophie, do you want that in English as well? We start with the fact, both Madam President and myself, that North America is the economic envy of the world. It's the most competitive economic region of the world, and part of the reason for that is the cooperation between Canada and Mexico, both of us and the United States. We complement the United States. We make them stronger. We are all stronger together.
The agreement we have today between our two nations complements KZMA in English, T-MEC in French. It complements that agreement, and I'm confident that with our review, our individual reviews, and our collective discussions on USMCA — to use the American term — we will reinforce the strength of our economies, our individual economies, and the fact that we are stronger together.
As I mentioned in the meeting with the businesspeople, I am optimistic — not only out of conviction, but because I believe that the trade agreement Canada-United States-Mexico, or Mexico-United States-Canada, is going to prevail.
The recent publication by the USTR treaties office in the United States of the call for the review of the T-MEC, for the working tables for the review of the T-MEC, is evidence of that. Of course, we have lived through circumstances in these months related to the tariffs defined by the United States government. But a good part of our trade with the United States continues to be tariff-free, and that is because it is competitive for the three countries.
I fully agree with Prime Minister Carney that we are the most competitive region in the world, that the best way to compete with other regions of the world is to strengthen the trade agreement among the three countries, and we have the vision that this should be our position. So we are optimistic even within the circumstances, given the trade we have today among Mexico, the United States, and Canada, and the three countries in turn, the economic integration we have among the three nations, and that it is what suits all three countries. So in that sense, these working tables will begin, and we are optimistic about the result.
Good afternoon, Julio Sánchez from UNTV. Good afternoon, Prime Minister, President. Thank you very much. I would like to ask you, when you refer to the security issue and these agreements to continue jointly promoting the efforts, whether you spoke about what precisely the challenge is for the two nations amid a new policy of the United States to confront the drug cartels. If you spoke about this, what would be the joint challenges? And I would add whether the issue was touched upon, or whether it is acknowledged that there is a presence of Mexican drug cartels operating in that country. Thank you very much. Good afternoon.
Let me begin by saying that with respect to transnational crime, organized crime, cartels, gangs — the unfortunate fact is that yes, there are gangs from one country in another country, but also vice versa. I'm going to acknowledge that there are Canadian gangs that operate in Mexico.
We cooperate with the Mexican authorities. We share information. We're deepening that cooperation. Surveillance, police cooperation is appropriate in order to ensure that these criminals are brought to justice, and we are not wavering in the efforts to bring them to justice, whether the activities are in Canada, in Mexico, or the United States. Today, what we agreed is to reinforce that bilateral cooperation on security with respect to the specific issue you're asking about.
Please recognize what I said in terms of the activities are true in both countries, which is why the cooperation is two-way. But I'll just take a moment to reinforce another point: the needs for security for our countries go broader than that. They include cybersecurity, foreign interference, defense cooperation, and we have enormous opportunities to cooperate.
And this is part — and I'm going to reuse a word I used at the start — the elevation of the relationship, the bringing up of the relationship, because there's a very clear strategy that's been developed around those issues which will make sure that our citizens, whether in Mexico, Canada, or the United States, are safer.
Of course, with respect to our sovereignties, always cooperation and collaboration. Recently there was a meeting with Canada of our security cabinet. We cooperate with the United States Northern Command on different topics, both Canada and we, and evidently we seek the best way to cooperate and coordinate to guarantee security in our countries. Particularly, we talked — Canada has a lot of experience in cybersecurity, for example. We are very interested in knowing how they work on this topic and that there can be cooperation and collaboration in terms of the best practices they have so that we can incorporate them.
They also recently strengthened their border through different mechanisms. We are interested in knowing how they did it. So, evidently, within the framework of our sovereignties, cooperation and collaboration is part of this action plan that we have agreed upon.
Thank you very much. I would take the opportunity to ask — you mentioned the topic of work visas. What was discussed about that? What were the commitments? Was any regulation agreed in that regard? Thank you very much.
We have work visas that today come from Canada to Mexico. They are very useful for the Canadian economy. And we agreed that they will be maintained, obviously, within the framework of respect for Canada's policy. And our labor ministries will continue collaborating on this action plan we defined. For the time being, it's not about expanding them. For the time being, they are maintained as they are, and the working tables will see whether it is feasible to expand them or not.
Thank you. Lastly, President, Prime Minister, I'd like to ask you whether the topic was addressed of recovering at some point this North American leaders' summit, of having again a trilateral meeting among Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Thank you very much.
We are going to wait for the upcoming review, and then we will plan a meeting that will surely take place.
