Kaine, Cornyn in Mexico to discuss U.S.-Mexican security, economic relationship

U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, concluded a two-day visit to Mexico today that included meetings with Mexican government officials, counterparts in the Mexican Congress, business leaders and representatives from civil society and non-government organizations to discuss economic and security issues. Kaine is visiting Latin America with Senator John Cornyn of Texas this week.

In a meeting with Foreign Minister José Antonio Meade Kuribreña, the Senators explored how the United States and Mexico can further strengthen trade between our two countries and enhance ongoing cooperation on shared security concerns.

“With a relationship so closely linked by trade, investment, and close people-to-people ties, we have a wide range of shared interests that demand close cooperation,” said Kaine.

The Senators also met with a group of Mexican parliamentarians to discuss economic integration and bilateral cooperation between the U.S. and Mexico, as well as American Chamber of Commerce representatives to discuss historic reforms underway in Mexico’s energy sector. The parliamentarians included Senator Marcella Guerra Castillo, Senator Gabriela Cuevas Barron, Congressman Eloy Cantú Segovia, and Congressman Agustín Barrios Gómez.

In a roundtable meeting with Mexican entrepreneurs and business incubators, the Senators learned about their successes in and promotion of innovation-based entrepreneurism.  The Senators emphasized that both the U.S. and Mexico benefit from an environment that encourages innovation on both sides of our shared border.

The Senators also visited a public-private partnership affiliated with Trust for the Americas, a non-profit organization that seeks to improve access to economic opportunities, and participated in a roundtable with Mexican civil society leaders focused on the rule of law and human rights.

Later this morning, Senators Kaine and Cornyn will travel to Honduras. In addition to meetings with U.S. and Honduran officials, members of Honduran civil society, and the private sector, Kaine will have a special opportunity to return to El Progreso where he lived for a year in the 1980s and worked with Jesuit missionaries at a technical school.