La identidad latinoamericana de la política exterior de México

Mexico and Latin America, with a common historical and cultural patrimony, share a view of international relations that is based on respect for national sovereignty, full effectiveness of the fundamental principles and rules that govern interaction between States, and the conviction that the preservation of democratic values and republican institutions constitutes the main pillar of their societies. According to Carlos de Icaza, the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are currently experiencing a consolidation of the profound structural transformations undertaken two decadeago in the political, economic and social spheres. Mexico’s strategy to reaffirm a privileged relationship with these countries, aimed at achieving the construction of a Latin American Community of Nations, is advancing in three directions: the hemispheric, that of regional mechanisms, and that of bilateral relations. In the first, Mexico’s purpose is to have hemispheric cooperation address the development requirements of the countries of LAC in the framework of organizations such as the Organization of American States or the Las Americas Summit. As regards the second, given the vital importance of reinforcing the LAC countries’ ability to have a timely influence on the principal world decisions, Mexican foreign policy pays special attention to regional cooperation and integration bodies and mechanisms (the Latin American Integration Association, the Rio Group, the Tuxtla Mechanism, and others). As for bilateral relations, the author examines the state of Mexico’s relations with each of the LAC countries, as well as the activity that has occurred as refers, for example, to State visits, binational commissions, and accords signed. The author concludes that, through the actions analyzed, Mexico has strengthened the mechanisms for dialogue and cooperation with the other LAC countries, a situation that, added to the expansion and renewal of the legal context in which cooperation between the countries of the region occurs, has a positive influence on the construction of a Latin American Community of Nations.