Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Türkiye, H.E. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, H.E. Marcelo Ebrard, as the co-chairs of the High-Level Binational Commission between the Republic of Türkiye and the United Mexican States, held the second meeting of the Türkiye-Mexico High-Level Binational Commission on 17 November 2022, in Ankara, on the occasion of the official visit of Secretary Ebrard to Türkiye.
At the meeting which was held in a cordial atmosphere, the Ministers discussed all aspects of the bilateral relations between Türkiye and Mexico and expressed their firm and mutual commitment to further deepen and diversify their strategic partnership in close cooperation with each other.
They also confirmed the central role of the High-Level Binational Commission as the main mechanism to facilitate and support the enhancement of bilateral cooperation on a wide range of issues and agreed to continue their close collaboration within the framework of this Commission.
In this regard, the Ministers agreed to convene in the nearest possible time the Political Committee of the High-Level Binational Commission at the level of Deputy Ministers to follow-up the discussions held today and finalize the road-map for the future advancement of the bilateral relations between Türkiye and Mexico.
Taking stock of the constant progress made in bilateral relations, as well as the recent developments at the international arena, where both Türkiye and Mexico play important roles, the Ministers also decided to continue regular high-level exchanges.
Minister Çavuşoğlu in this regard extended an invitation to Secretary Ebrard to attend the next session of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF), to be held in April next year. The Ministers also expressed their satisfaction for the ongoing cooperation based on partnership between ADF and COMEXI.
The Ministers stressed the importance of inter-parliamentary diplomacy as a means to further enrich their bilateral relations and expressed their desire to see more frequent exchanges between the parliaments of their countries, including through the Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Groups.
On economic issues, while welcoming the recent increase in the bilateral trade volume which is expected to surpass for the first time ever 2 billion US Dollars at the end of this year, the Ministers pointed at the yet untapped potential and reiterated their commitment to reach the target of 5 billion US Dollars annual trade volume, as agreed upon in 2015 during the visit of President Erdoğan to Mexico.
To this end, the Ministers agreed on the organization of the second meeting of the Türkiye-Mexico Joint Economic Commission at the earliest possible time with a view to undertaking a comprehensive review of the economic relations and identifying the steps to be taken to further increase mutual trade and investments including the prospective resumption of the Free Trade Agreement negotiations.
The Ministers underlined the importance of contacts among the business communities of the two countries and appealed their relevant institutions, including DEIK and COMCE, to organize business forums and seminars that will allow the business people from both countries to get together and explore the opportunities of new trade and investment projects.
The Ministers also welcomed the increase of frequency of the Turkish Airlines’ direct flights between Istanbul and Mexico City, which have reached 11 weekly flights as of November 1 this year, and agreed that the enhanced air connectivity between the two countries continues to contribute to the development of economic cooperation, including in the field of tourism.
On justice and internal affairs, the Ministers discussed the challenges posed by irregular migration throughout the world while underscoring the critical role played by Türkiye and Mexico in this regard.
The Ministers also underlined the importance of shared international responsibility in dealing with the challenges of irregular migration and called on the international community to be more cooperative in effectively managing this phenomenon, including through addressing its root causes.
The Ministers then recognized the positive contributions of regular migrants to the global economy and underlined that Mexico and Türkiye will remain committed to support the full inclusion of migrants and refugees in pandemic response and economic recovery efforts and to ensure full respect for their human rights.
The Ministers also reviewed the state of their relations with regards to consular and judicial affairs and expressed their hope for the swift conclusion of negotiations and signing of the pending agreements in these fields. They also stated their support for the widening of their consular networks in their respective countries, including through the appointment of new Honorary Consuls.
On security issues, the Ministers reiterated their full support for the continuation of the cooperation between Türkiye and Mexico against all forms and manifestations of terrorism. In this regard, Secretary Ebrard strongly condemned the recent terrorist attack that took place in Istanbul and expressed Mexico’s firm solidarity with the government and people of Türkiye.
The Ministers also underlined their commitment to fight against organized crime and agreed to further strengthen the cooperation between their relevant institutions, including law enforcement and intelligence agencies. Secretary Ebrard presented Mexico’s strategy to combat organized crime, including the lawsuit against eleven American gun manufacturers for their negligent commercial activities and against five gun dealers for participating in illicit arms trafficking.
On issues related to culture and education, the Ministers appreciated the continued cooperation between the two countries on the occasions of the 200th anniversary of Mexico’s independence in 2021 and the centennial of the Turkish Republic in 2023. In this regard, Secretary Ebrard noted that, in cooperation with Mexico’s Secretariat of the Navy, there is a preparation for the sail training vessel Cuauhtémoc, to pay a port call in Türkiye on the occasion of the centennial of the Turkish Republic.
Minister Çavuşoğlu referred to the Yunus Emre Cultural Centre recently opened in Mexico City, one of the two such centers in Latin America and the Caribbean region, and stated that the Centre will carry out a variety of cultural and academic activities to create a better understanding between the Turkish and Mexican peoples.
The Ministers also stressed the importance of cooperation in the field of education and reiterated their commitment to further enhance their collaboration through exchange of students, provision of scholarships and joint academic activities. Minister Çavuşoğlu in this regard expressed Türkiye’s willingness to have more Mexican students benefit from Türkiye Scholarships and continue their higher education in Türkiye.
The Ministers also expressed their support for the swift conclusion of negotiations and signing of the pending agreements in the field of education and hoped that this will further facilitate their cooperation.
The Ministers underscored the importance to promote respect for cultural heritage, avoiding its misuse and appropriation and to combat illicit trafficking. The Ministers expressed their commitment to strengthen their bilateral cooperation for the protection, conservation, return and restitution of cultural property.
Regarding development assistance, the Ministers welcomed the cooperation between the Turkish and Mexican development agencies, TIKA and AMEXCID, and reiterated their support for the further enhancement of this cooperation not only at the bilateral level but also for the realization of development assistance projects in third countries.
On regional and global matters, the Ministers had an extensive exchange on various topics of common interest and confirmed that Türkiye and Mexico have shared objectives and interests on a wide range of issues.
In this regard, the Ministers reconfirmed their commitment to continue their close cooperation in multilateral platforms such as the UN, G-20 and particularly MIKTA, which for the last 10 years has been working towards the strengthening of multilateralism and global governance through international cooperation and solidarity.
Secretary Ebrard expressed his deep appreciation for the successful coordination of MIKTA under the chairmanship of Türkiye, recognizing that its leadership has contributed to the continuous promotion of MIKTA within relevant international fora in dealing with issues of global agenda.
Minister Çavuşoğlu also expressed his appreciation for the leading role played by Mexico in promoting economic integration in Latin America and the Caribbean region and in that context wished success for the Pacific Alliance Summit to be organized in Mexico on November 25, 2022.
The Ministers then referred to issues like food and energy security, climate change, migration, pandemic response, reform of the UN and sustainable development as examples of common global challenges which require their concerted attention and cooperation at international platforms.
The Ministers also reaffirmed that the draft resolution submitted to the UN General Assembly, entitled “Promoting Zero Waste Approaches to advance 2030 Agenda”, will make important contributions to the global sustainable waste management efforts.
The Ministers also discussed the latest developments related to the war in Ukraine, reaffirmed their support and commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and agreed to continue their close contacts on this issue. Secretary Ebrard in this regard commended Türkiye’s role in the activation and continuation of the Istanbul Grain Deal, as well as its ongoing efforts to bring about a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine.
On the situation in Venezuela, both Ministers reiterated their support for the continuation of the dialogue process between the government and the opposition. Minister Çavuşoğlu in this regard commended the critical role played by Mexico in hosting several rounds of this dialogue process last year.
The Ministers agreed to hold the next meeting of the High-Level Binational Commission latest in 2024.
Secretary Ebrard expressed his sincere thanks for the organization of the High-Level Binational Commission meeting in Ankara and the hospitality extended to him and his delegation.