Two-Day United Nations Leaders Conference - 2002-03-23

President Bush and his Mexican counterpart, Vicente Fox, met in Monterrey, Mexico, to discuss topics of mutual interest to both countries. The discussions between the two leaders revolved around U.S. and Mexico policies regarding immigration, border security, and other bilateral issues. The meeting of the U.S. and Mexican presidents took place yesterday following a two-day United Nations leaders conference in Monterrey, where leaders from fifty other countries participated to negotiate on eradicating illiteracy worldwide. After their bilateral talks, the U.S. and Mexican leaders stated in a joint press conference that they consulted on ways to secure their shared borders without disrupting trade and legal immigration of Mexican nationals to the U.S. They noted that reports suggesting the U.S. pressured Mexico to prevent Fidel Castro, the President of Cuba, from attending the summit in Mexico, which concluded yesterday, were largely untrue. Castro left Mexico on Thursday after delivering his speech at the conference. Prior to the bilateral meeting with Mr. Fox, President Bush stated in an interview with Mexican television that he is pursuing a reform of U.S. immigration laws. Under the new laws, the status of millions of Mexicans living and working in the U.S. without completing immigration paperwork will be clarified. The Mexican government has requested that the U.S. grant permanent residency to illegal Mexican immigrants in the U.S.