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Mexico City, February 9, 2022 – Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry visited Mexico City today to further U.S.-Mexico dialogue on climate collaboration and clean energy action. During his time in Mexico City, Secretary Kerry and Ambassador Ken Salazar met with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, and Finance Rogelio Ramirez de la O to discuss how North America can become the world’s clean energy powerhouse and a leader in the fight against the climate crisis.
In their meeting with President López Obrador, the two discussed the next steps in implementing the climate and clean-energy commitments the United States and Mexico made in the Joint Statement on Mexican – U.S. Engagement on Climate Change (October 2021), at the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP26), Glasgow, Scotland, in November, and at North American Leaders Summit Washington, DC in November 18.
They discussed the urgent need to accelerate national and international efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Both countries agreed that the 2020s are a crucial decade for climate change action, as affirmed in COP26. They plan to take decisive action to implement policies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors, including by significantly increasing renewable energy development.
They discussed ways to increase and accelerate cooperation towards that end. They also discussed the possibility of rapid, significant deployments of renewable energy in Mexico to boost the Mexican and North American economies, as well as cut energy costs for Mexican businesses and reduce carbon pollution. Mexico has an extraordinary amount of renewable energy potential. It is well-positioned to lead the way in developing a clean and sustainable energy economy.
President López Obrador informed Secretary Kerry about his administration’s plans to implement the commitments from the October 2021 Joint Statement, to accelerate Mexican action on renewable energy development and take other near-term policy actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while collaborating with the Biden-Harris administration.
Both sides agreed to speedily implement high-level dialogue regarding the implementation of these goals by forming a U.S. Mexico Climate and Clean Energy Working Group that includes key agencies from both sides. According to the October Joint Statement policy areas will include: accelerating renewable energy development and solar supply chains; tackling methane emission from oil and natural gas; reducing transportation emissions through electric vehicles and other strategies; eliminating deforestation and supporting nature based solutions; and Nationally Determined Contributions.
The two countries will initiate policy and technical exchange on their respective 2030 goals and on the development of Mexico’s Nationally Determined Contribution. Both sides agreed to meet within the next 30 days to discuss opportunities to accelerate clean energy deployment.
Ambassador Salazar and Secretary Kerry stressed the importance of investing in renewable energy to benefit consumers and the wider economy as well as our collective fight against climate change. To that end, they raised the significant concerns the Biden-Harris Administration has about Mexico’s current energy-sector proposal and the imperative to bolster open and competitive economies, consistent with USMCA.
Kerry said: “Working together, North America can become the world’s leading clean energy economy. In conversations with our Mexican partners, I had the opportunity to share our concerns with Mexico’s current proposal for the energy sector, and to collaborate on a vision for growing renewable energy and fighting the climate crisis.”
Ambassador Salazar also shared his optimism about the future. “We have a historic opportunity as a region to create clean, renewable energy that both provides the power our economies need and protects the environment. Our countries can be leaders in a clean-energy revolution.”
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