DEMARCHE DELIVERED CONCERNING HIGH LEVEL DIALOGUE

UNCLAS MEXICO 004857 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID PREF SMIG UNGA UNGA PREL PGOV MX SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED CONCERNING HIGH LEVEL DIALOGUE ON INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT REF: SECSTATE 122513 ¶1. (SBU) Poloff delivered reftel talking points to several officials at the Secretariat for Foreign Relations (SRE): Director General for North American Affairs, Bosco Marti Ascencio; Director General for the United Nations, Ulises Canchola Gutierrez; Director of International Organizations, Norma Araceli Diaz Godinez; and Director of International Policy for Civil and Political Rights, Luis Angel Benavides. ¶2. (SBU) The Mexican government is sending a delegation to the High Level Dialogue for International Migration and Development (HLD) that is drawn from the SRE and Secretariat for Government (SEGOB). The SRE will be represented in New York by Secretary of Foreign Relations Luis Ernesto Derbez Bautista, Undersecretary of North American Affairs Geronimo Gutierrez Fernandez, Undersecretary for Human Rights and Democracy Maria del Refugio Gonzalez Dominguez, and Marti. Secretary of Government Carlos Abascal Carranza plans to SIPDIS attend the HLD, though Canchola expressed concern whether his schedule - implying duties tending to current political events in Mexico - would permit travel to New York in September. Other SEGOB officials to attend are the Undersecretary for Population, Migration and Religious Affairs, Lauro Lopez Sanchez Acevedo; Commissioner of the National Institute for Migration (INM),Hipolito Trevino Lecea; and the Coordinator for International and Inter-institutional Relations of INM, Raul Cueto Martinez. ¶3. (SBU) Canchola explained Mexico's long and active participation in the UN regarding issues of migration. Mexico is looking forward to a constructive discussion at the HLD, and beyond the New York event it wishes for further multilateral dialogue on migration. While Mexico does not wish for the creation of another UN institution, it is open to the establishment of a type of thematic forum because it believes a space for continued dialogue would be constructive. Canchola mentioned the benefits of continued multilateral dialogue, in conjunction with civil society organizations, in addressing global themes like the roots of migration, societal impacts, security, human rights, employment, and women's issues, among others. Mexico holds the position that multilateral dialogue does not exclude bilateral cooperation. Furthermore, Canchola emphasized that Mexico has no illusion that bilateral issues can be resolved in a multilateral setting. Marti described Mexico's position from a strictly North American perspective, citing a genuine interest in working with the USG on a bilateral level to arrive at a comprehensive and realistic solution to the migration issue. Moreover, the SRE has operated on a regional level, in which Derbez has coordinated with the Central American countries, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Ecuador, to assess common issues and address the USG with their shared concerns. Marti pointed out that both multilateral and regional initiatives to address migration are not intended for "US-bashing" but rather constructive discourse and attempts to arrive at answers for major migratory issues that preoccupy Mexico and its southern neighbors. Visit Mexico City's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/mexicocity GARZA