▲ At the National Palace, President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo led the welcome ceremony for the French president, Emmanuel Macron.Photo Germán Canseco
Arturo Sánchez Jiménez and Alma E. Muñoz
La Jornada Newspaper
Saturday, November 8, 2025, p. 5
Mexico and France agreed to strengthen their cooperation in security and customs under a focus of mutual respect, transparency and sovereignty, President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo and Emmanuel Macron announced during a joint press conference at the National Palace, within the framework of the French president’s official visit to Mexico.
Macron arrived at the 19th Military Air Base in Mexico City early Friday morning, from Brazil, and was received by Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente. At 9:40 a.m. he arrived at the National Palace, where Sheinbaum Pardo welcomed him with a formal ceremony. Later, both held a private meeting and a meeting with businessmen, including Carlos Slim, Altagracia Gómez and Francisco Cervantes. After that, they held a press conference in the Treasury Room.
During his speech, the French president stressed that “the fight against drug traffickers unites us all,” although he pointed out that such cooperation can only take place “between sovereign states that respect each other.” Asked about the recent United States bombings against alleged vessels linked to drug trafficking in the Caribbean and the Pacific, he was emphatic: “The sovereignty of all states must be absolutely respected.”
For his part, Sheinbaum Pardo reported that his government will present next Tuesday the results of the last year in terms of security and reiterated that its strategy “is comprehensive”, addressing both the structural causes of violence and international cooperation. “We collaborate with different countries around the world, particularly with France,” he indicated.
In the economic sphere, Macron announced the reactivation of the Franco-Mexican Strategic Council, with the purpose of expanding investments and promoting new joint projects. Currently, 700 French companies operate in Mexico, generating about 180 thousand direct jobs and 700 thousand indirect jobs. “We want these numbers to increase even more,” said the president.
French investments will be concentrated in the aeronautical, railway, energy and technological innovation sectors, areas aligned with the priorities of Plan Mexico. Bilateral trade reached 6.8 billion euros in 2024, a figure that both nations seek to increase through new economic cooperation mechanisms.
Sheinbaum and Macron also agreed to reinforce the common agenda on issues of gender equality, human rights and climate action. The French president highlighted the agreement between both countries in the defense of multilateralism, international law and the need to redouble efforts in the face of the environmental crisis. “We must accelerate adaptation to the devastating effects of meteorological phenomena,” he said, expressing France’s solidarity for the recent floods recorded in Mexico.
Sheinbaum described Macron’s visit as the beginning of “a new stage of economic, political and social understanding and cooperation” between both nations. “Mexico and France share the vision of building a more just international order, based on respect and peace,” he concluded.
After the conference, Macron met again with businessmen and the French community residing in Mexico before returning to the airport. This visit, the first by a French head of state in 11 years, coincided with preparations for the bicentennial of diplomatic relations between Mexico and France, which will be celebrated in 2026.
