President Claudia Sheinbaum received this Tuesday at the National Palace the Governor General of Canada, Mary Simon, who is the head of state, within the framework of an official visit to the country.
Sheinbaum came out to greet Simon through the entrance intended for access by heads of state and led her to the main patio of the National Palace, where the official reception ceremony took place, with the interpretation of the national anthems of Mexico and Canada.
Previously, during her morning press conference, the Mexican president highlighted that Mary Simon is the first indigenous governor general of Canada.
“She is the first indigenous governor general in Canada. And we are going to welcome her as head of state. She comes to talk, above all, about the rights of indigenous peoples,” Sheinbaum said.
After the formal ceremony, both moved to the presidential offices, where they held a private meeting, as part of the bilateral agenda.
The visit takes place in a context of close relations between Mexico and Canada, strategic partners within the framework of the Treaty between Mexico, the United States and Canada (TMEC), as well as in multilateral forums and issues of political, social and economic cooperation.
Sheinbaum received the Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, last September at the National Palace.
This Tuesday’s meeting with Simon occurs while the governments of Mexico, the United States and Canada begin to outline the issues that could be reviewed in the trade agreement, in a scenario of tensions over tariff measures, rules of origin, energy policies and strategies for relocating productive chains, known as ‘nearshoring’.
Read: Governor General of Canada will meet with Sheinbaum to ‘strengthen ties’
Last Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said during a tour of a Ford automotive plant in Detroit that he “wasn’t even thinking” about the trade agreement he has with Mexico and Canada as it is “irrelevant.”
The USMCA was negotiated during Trump’s first term and came into force in 2020, replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which the Republican considered harmful to the United States.
The three countries must review the treaty in 2026, an agreement that has the active support of both Mexico and Canada in the face of Washington’s doubts.
With information from EFE
