Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Mexico.
Following talks with Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubón, Lavrov answered questions from the media, Foreign Ministry’s website reports. It cites him as saying, “We have paid much attention to trade and economic cooperation. Trade is growing, although there was a tendency towards its deceleration last year. But Mexico confidently remains Russia’s second biggest partner in the region after Brazil. We have welcomed progress in the expansion of contacts between the business communities. We have noted in particular that the Russia-Mexico Entrepreneurial Committee created under the auspices of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry held its first meeting last April. We said that our companies were active in the two countries’ markets. Lukoil is expanding its presence in Mexico, Mexico’s Nemak, a car components manufacturer, has a facility in the Ulyanovsk Region of Russia, and the GRUMA International Food has opened a plant in the Moscow Region.”
“There are good prospects in view in energy, car-making, shipbuilding, the aircraft industry, the chemical industry, pharmaceuticals, rail transport and agriculture. We have made good progress in the area of military-technical cooperation: Mexico operates about 50 Russian-made helicopters and a helicopter servicing centre with a pilot-training school attached to it. There are prospects in this area as well,” the Minister noted. “Generally, we share the opinion that we need to diversify our trade and investment ties, including by being more pro-active in using the potential of the Russia-Mexico Mixed Commission on Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation and Maritime Navigation. Regrettably, this commission held its latest meeting in December 2011, but the current Government of Mexico is keen to reactivate this tool. We have agreed that the next session of the Intergovernmental Commission for Economic Cooperation will be held in Mexico later this year.”