The president of United States, Joe Biden, arrived this Monday at the National Palace of Mexico to meet with his Mexican counterpart, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, with whom he will address the immigration crisis, the fight against drug trafficking and trade disputes.
Biden and the first lady, Jill Biden, moved under heavy security from their Presidente Intercontinental hotel, located in the wealthy Polanco neighborhood of the Mexican capital, to the presidential palace, where they were received by López Obrador and his wife, Beatriz Gutiérrez Müller.
It is the first time that the president has visited a Latin American country since he arrived at the White House two years ago. The last US president to visit Mexico was Barack Obama in 2014.
The four greeted each other with a smile and had a brief chat before going to the Patio de Honores of the National Palace, where a military band played the anthem of both countries.
Laterthe wives of the presidents gave a speech to commemorate the 200 years of diplomatic relations between the United States and Mexicoin which they underlined the “friendship” between the two countries, to then move on to the private meeting.
Neither Biden nor López Obrador offered a statement.
It is the first time that Biden has visited a Latin American country since he came to the White House two years ago. The last US president to visit Mexico was Barack Obama (2009-2017) in 2014.
Biden and López Obrador will hold a bilateral meeting one day before the North American Leaders Summit is held in the Mexican capitalin which Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will also participate.
Both presidents will address the regional immigration crisis just days after the White House announced a new immigration program to stop the arrival of people at its southern border.
The United States will offer 30,000 humanitarian permits for Venezuelans, Cubans, Nicaraguans and Haitiansbut it will expressly return to Mexico all those migrants who cross the border irregularly.
According to the White House, the Mexican government has agreed to receive 30,000 deported migrants each month.
The meeting, in which they will also discuss drug trafficking issues, takes place days after Mexico captured Ovidio Guzmán, son of Joaquín “el Chapo” Guzmán, whom the United States wants to extradite.
Both governments have denied that there is a relationship between the capture of the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel and Biden’s visit to Mexico.
On the table there are also trade issues, such as the dispute filed by the United States and Canada against Mexico’s energy policy that favors public companies of the Mexican State. After the bilateral meeting, a dinner is scheduled between Biden, López Obrador, Trudeau and his wives.
EFE International news agency based in Madrid and present in more than 110 countries.