Washington.- United States congressmen and senators on Tuesday urged the new President of Mexico to take quick action on how to resolve the trade controversy over the import of genetically modified corn to Mexico, as well as the import of Chinese automobiles to Mexico.
A group of 21 congressmen from both parties published a letter in which they note the arrival of Claudia Sheinbaum to the Presidency and in which they call on the Biden Administration to resolve the controversy over Mexico’s ban on importing genetically modified corn.
In August 2023, the US Government requested an arbitration panel regarding the ban by the Government of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on importing corn for human consumption, something that US producers consider a violation of regional terms of trade. “We urge you to continue collaborating with your Mexican counterparts to address current trade barriers, including Mexico’s ban on genetically modified corn, as President Sheinbaum takes office,” said the letter to US Trade Representative Katherine Tai. .
The letter was led by Republican Randy Feenstra of Iowa and Democrat Dan Kildee of Michigan.
“We remain concerned about the effects of Mexico’s policies to ban genetically modified corn for both human consumption and animal feed, as U.S. exporters face legal uncertainty that jeopardizes market access,” the letter says. Driven by the clauses of the Trade Agreement between Mexico, the US and Canada (T-MEC), the Biden Administration convened the dispute settlement panel on the ban on the import of genetically modified corn to Mexico, which met this summer and is expected to a verdict this fall. Since 2021, the Mexican market is the main destination for US corn exports and these currently have a value of 5 billion dollars, mainly comprising imports of genetically modified yellow corn for forage.
They ask for action with Chinese cars
Just on the same day as Sheinbaum’s inauguration in Mexico City, US legislators took the opportunity to ask the new President in two separate letters to pay attention to two issues that are highly sensitive for automotive and corn producers in the US.
In a letter, 21 Senators and congressmen from the Democratic Party congratulated Sheinbaum on her historic election as President of Mexico but asked her to pay attention to car imports from China, which in 2023 alone exceeded 129,000 units according to official Mexican data. “We ask that you quickly pay attention to a new and growing problem: the risks to the national security of both nations arising from the widespread presence of ‘connected’ vehicles manufactured by companies with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party,” the letter says. According to the letter from legislators led by Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and Michigan Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin, the importation of Chinese cars to Mexico represents a threat only because of the potential they would have to capture sensitive territory data. national and transmit them to China. “These vehicles can collect private personal data from individuals, gather valuable information for a potential adversary like China, and can even launch cyber attacks against critical infrastructure systems,” the lawmakers said of the data collected by Chinese cars in Mexico. Specifically, the lawmakers Americans ask Sheinbaum to formalize the ban so that Chinese firms receive incentives to open plants or associations in Mexico, as well as establish a national security review process regarding the importation or Chinese production of cars in Mexico. The letter is signed among others by Democratic Senators Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and by Senator Gary Peters of Michigan; There are also congressmen such as Debbie Dingell of Michigan, Thomas Suozzi of New York and Greg Stanton of Arizona, all Democrats.
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