With agreements like the one with Mexico, the EU binds itself to like-minded partners
The elimination of tariffs in a number of sectors will benefit exporters on both sides. The arrangement will open new markets for producers in both regions, while maintaining the highest standards of health and food safety and promoting environmentally friendly practices.
by Ursula von der Leyen
For many decades, the EU and Mexico have been trusted partners. Now, in this era of increasing geopolitical tensions, we must seize every opportunity to deepen this partnership, and this week's EU-Mexico summit produced the results we need.
Our Global Agreement, signed in 1997, was one of the most ambitious ever concluded by the EU. This historic agreement - a pioneering advance for both sides - meant that trade between us quadrupled.
Yesterday I had the honour to sign, together with President Claudia Sheinbaum, an update of this crucial agreement.
Europe is now Mexico's second largest export destination, while in turn, tens of thousands of European companies, the vast majority of them small businesses, export to Mexico. More than 11 000 European companies have offices in Mexico, directly or indirectly supporting 5 million jobs.
The world, however, has changed. We have entered a new and difficult phase. A time of tariffs and export controls, industrial rivalries and geopolitical fragmentation. Disruptions from the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific region clearly demonstrate how interconnected and vulnerable the global economy is. That is why our renewed EU-Mexico Global Agreement is so important: it binds us to each other for the long term, with the promise of achieving even greater benefits for our citizens.
