For the first time ever, the G20 Summit will be held in Mexico in June. This indicates that the G20 is now focusing on fast-emerging economies. As current G20 chair, Mexico faces complex negotiations in the context of an extremely volatile global economic and financial situation. In this exclusive interview with Saudi Gazette's Editor-in-Chief Omar Elmershedi, Mexican Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Arturo Trejo discusses his country's outreach activities since assuming the presidency of the G20. The Mexican ambassador began by saying that he is a regular reader of Saudi Gazette and that he reads it every day at breakfast. Then he talked about the fact that both Saudi Arabia and Mexico are members of the G20 where they have many common approaches to the problems the world faces today. Excerpts from the interview: Q: What are Mexico's goals now that it has assumed the presidency of the G20? A: Mexico now has the presidency of the G20 and we will hold the Summit in June this year. We hope that Saudi Arabia will be represented by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The European crisis is a very big issue for the global economy and we are worried about it. However, Europe can recover quickly because of the fact that we all live in a globalized world. Mexico is a nation of trade with a very high volume of trade mainly with the US which is estimated to be around 80 percent. As we have assumed the presidency of the G20, Mexico would like to make a contribution to the world and at least to the members of the G20 by figuring out some mechanisms to solve the problems we face right now and to prevent them from occurring again. Two weeks ago, we had on February 19-20 an informal meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the G20 where Dr. Nizar Bin Obaid Madani headed the Saudi delegation. The recommendations of the meeting will be disclosed in the upcoming Summit. One week later, we also had the meeting of ministers of finance and the central banks of the G20 in Mexico City where they discussed the latest issues and the economic crisis which has hit the world. Q: Is there any problem concerning the energy issue in Mexico? A: Mexico is one of the main oil producers in the world – of course not as big as Saudi Arabia. It produces around 2.8 million barrels a day and it exports around one half of that amount. Mexico has an approach toward green energy where wind and solar energy resources are used so that carbon emissions can be reduced. In Mexico City there are strict rules regarding automobile emissions and cars must undergo very strict inspections. One of the issues on the upcoming G20 Summit agenda is the climate change issue and ways to solve energy poverty. Q: What are the things that need to be improved to enhance trade relations between Saudi Arabia and Mexico? A: The Mexican business sector needs more engagement with Saudi Arabia as most Mexican businesses are primarily engaged in trade with the US. The Embassy in Riyadh always tries to encourage businessmen and investors in Mexico to tap the Saudi market by organizing annual delegation visits to Riyadh and Jeddah. We hope in the future we can enlarge our trade with Saudi Arabia as bilateral trade is only a billion dollars which is very low compared with the size of our economies and the potential that we have. Q: Due to the fact that Brazil is the second major exporter of food and especially meat to Saudi Arabia, what is the potential in Mexico regarding food security and the food requirements of the Saudi economy and GCC countries as well? A: Mexico has a lot to offer and we have a much diversified economy from industrial to agricultural products. Mexico has been one of the most advanced states in the Latin American region. Mexico could also be a good competitor in food products with some countries like Brazil which is the main meat exporter to Saudi Arabia. We need to enhance our food trade with Saudi Arabia especially halal food. Q: What about tourism potential in Mexico? Do you expect to see more Saudi tourists there? A: Saudi tourists to Mexico are of the exclusive level who come for tourism in Cancun and Los Cabos. Actually we would like to have more Saudi visitors come to Mexico. We have already sent an official invitation to Prince Sultan Bin Salman to visit Mexico. Hopefully he will visit us in May. Mexican tourist attractions combine both perfect beaches and interesting cultural locations as there are many ancient places and historical sites to visit. Q: What is your assessment of what has happened in the Arab World regarding the so-called “Arab Spring”? A: Change is the element of evolution of all mankind. Changes sometimes are good. However, they can also be bad and at times very bad. But change in the end cannot be stopped as everything has to change and so do the revolutions in some Arab regions. We also had some changes in Mexico at the time of social movement and the revolution of 1910 which lasted almost 10 years. Now the process of change is taking place in the Arab World. When some regimes and governments fell, like what happened in Egypt, it really takes much more time and lives to build up a new system. In my personal view and also the official position of my country, we regret and condemn the daily loss of lives of innocent people occurring in the Arab Spring. We are facing changes now and we hope for a more stable and better future for the majority of people in the Arab World. Q: How do diplomats and ambassadors deal with the situation of being in one of the countries where revolt and revolutions occur? What challenges do they face? A: Being an ambassador or a diplomat in a country where changes and revolt occur makes your job very challenging and more difficult. Fortunately, I have never been in such a situation. Our goal as ambassadors is to have good relations with the countries where we represent our nation. Q: When did Mexico establish its embassy in Saudi Arabia? A: The Mexican embassy was initially started here in Jeddah; afterwards it moved to Riyadh in the 1980s. We have other embassies in other Arab countries including Kuwait and the UAE and we hope to establish one in Bahrain, Oman and Yemen. We have plans to open an embassy in Qatar as it is a very important state in the Gulf region and outspoken in foreign policy. Q: How is Saudi Arabia perceived in Mexico? A: The vision of Saudi Arabia in Mexico is that it is the world's largest oil producer. In general we have a positive image about Saudis and their government. Mexicans in general are aware that the Kingdom has the two holy sites of Makkah and Madina. We have very good relations with Saudi Arabia. We signed last year an MoU on political cooperation. I would like to welcome Saudi investors and business owners to Mexico so that they can experience the investment areas available there as we are both countries of free trade. And also I urge Mexican businessmen to come to Saudi Arabia and discuss the opportunities they have to invest in your country. My embassy will provide the required support for both Saudi and Mexican investors. Q: How large is the Mexican community here? A: We have 70 Mexican students studying at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). We also have some Mexicans working in Saudi Aramco and some other companies. There are a total of 300 registered Mexicans in Saudi Arabia. __
