Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 25 January 2024
50. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs to set out the issues he raised with the Mexican Foreign Minister on his recent visit to Mexico; if he will provide details of the meetings he had there; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3128/24]
View answerI visited Mexico on 7-10 January.
In a rich exchange with Foreign Minister Alicia Barcena, we discussed: bilateral relations, including our deepening economic relations and the consistent growth of our trade and investment relations over recent years; shared priorities in development/cooperation and peacebuilding in the Latin America region, notably Central America and Colombia; the Russian war in Ukraine and the situation in Gaza; migration; and continued close bilateral and multilateral cooperation on the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
I also met with high-level representatives of various Irish companies with significant investments in Mexico, as well as with Mexican companies that have invested in Ireland.
In addition, I opened the new premises of the Embassy of Ireland in Mexico, and formally inaugurated Ireland’s Office for Central America. This Office is located within the Embassy and has been working to strengthen political, cultural, economic and values-based links with the Central American region since last year, including through the development and rollout of a development/cooperation programme.
My visit programme also included a visit to Cafemin, one of the main migrant reception centres in Mexico City, which is in receipt of Irish funding. While there, I had the opportunity to meet some of the residents of the centre, as well as the heads of the UN High Commission for Refugees and the International Organisation for Migration in Mexico, and to discuss the issue of migration from both a local and global perspective.
Together with members of the Irish community in Mexico City, I also participated in a ceremony to honour the Saint Patrick’s Battalion (Batallón de San Patricio), a group of Irish soldiers who fought as part of the Mexican army in the 1840s. The ceremony reflected our longstanding historical and diaspora links, and also allowed me to meet many members of the active Irish diaspora based in Mexico City.
