    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book I)]
    [June 21, 1993]
    [Pages 910-912]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to the United States-Mexico Binational Commission and an
    Exchange With Reporters
    June 21, 1993

        The President. Please sit down, ladies and gentlemen. I want to
    welcome all of you here to the Roosevelt Room at the White House and say
    a special word of welcome to our distinguished guests from Mexico.
        Today the U.S.-Mexico Binational Commission is holding its 10th
    meeting at the State Department. I want to say how very proud I am as
    President to welcome all the participants here. There is no closer
    partnership between two nations than that which we have with our
    neighbor Mexico. We share strong ties of history. Our cultures are
    richly interwoven. Our people are strong in their bonds of kinship and
    friendship. And the peaceful cooperation of the communities along our
    2,000-mile border is not only important but is a real tribute to both
    our peoples.
        An important sign of this close relationship is the Binational
    Commission itself, which provides a forum for our Cabinets to meet
    annually to work on issues ranging from the environment to education to
    telecommunications. Another sign of that partnership is our increasingly
    close cooperation in world affairs and our commitment to support
    democracy here in this hemisphere. We worked together to help end the
    war in El Salvador. Mexico has contributed to the International Civilian
    Mission of Human Rights Observers in Haiti. Mexico's leadership in the
    OAS was critical to the successful collective defense of democracy in
    Guatemala. And President Salinas speaks with a special authority as one
    of the world's leading economic reformers when he calls for progress in
    the Uruguay round to expand world trade.
        Mexico and the United States agree that the movement toward open
    markets and free trade in Latin America is vital for the long term
    success and strengthening of democracy and human rights in this
    hemisphere. The countries of Latin American have already made tremendous
    strides. The emergence of democratically elected governments in this
    region has permitted Latin America to modernize and to develop. The
    Latin countries have made enormous progress restructuring and opening
    their economics, controlling inflation, and increasing the
    competitiveness of their own productive sectors. In the last 2 years,
    for the first time in a decade, Latin America has had real growth in per
    capita income.
        Democratic governments have achieved peace, strengthened freedoms,
    and accelerated the pace of economic integration. With the support of
    the OAS and the United Nations, internal conflicts in Nicaragua and El
    Salvador have ended and hopefully will soon end in Guatemala. The OAS
    routinely observes the freedom of elections across the region.
    Subregional free trade agreements have emerged throughout the

    [[Page 911]]

    hemisphere. These are points that were recently very well articulated by
    Foreign Minister Solana at the OAS and those which we in the United
    States enthusiastically embrace.
        Increasingly today, the line has blurred between domestic and
    foreign policies. What we do abroad directly affects us here at home.
    And our success at home directly impacts what we are able to do abroad.
    No relationship illustrates better the strong linkage between foreign
    and domestic policies than the relationship between the United States
    and Mexico. The interdependence of our societies and our people are
    stronger than ever, and they will continue to grow. Domestic policies
    affect the lives and prosperity of Mexicans, even if they are American
    domestic policies, in the same way that the domestic policies of Mexico
    profoundly affect us.
        You need only look at the scope and complexity of today's agenda in
    this meeting to understand how important Mexico and the United States
    are to each other. We will work to deepen and expand that partnership.
    One of the most productive areas in which we must work is on trade
    between our two nations. That has doubled in the last 5 years. This
    trade is vital to our economic future, to Mexico's economic future, and
    to our cooperation in every other area of endeavor. It is making both of
    our economies grow. It is making both of us more efficient and more
    competitive in global markets. And it adds to the resources we can use
    to address our common concerns such as the environment.
        That is why I am firmly committed to the North American Free Trade
    Agreement and why the American people and Congress will, I hope and
    believe, support the NAFTA this year. We are the world's number one
    exporter. Exports are creating more jobs for us in the last few years
    than any other source of economic activity. American workers and
    companies want to be able to compete fully and fairly in global markets.
    They seek no special advantage, only a level playing field. Mexico has
    already made important strides in labor rights and in protecting the
    environment. And when we conclude the side agreements which are now the
    subject of negotiations, we will have an even broader basis for
    cooperation and progress and a warmer embrace of the NAFTA here in the
    United States.
        By approving NAFTA, we can cement in place a new source of jobs and
    economic growth for workers in Canada, Mexico, and our own country. And
    we'll do more than that. We can send a signal to the nations of the
    Americas that are on their way to rebuilding their economies, that we
    are on our way to work with them to build a hemisphere of freer trade,
    more jobs, and higher growth.
        Once again, let me say how very grateful I am to see all of you
    here. And I know my administration is proud to be a part of these
    negotiations. I look forward to our continued successes, including the
    success of NAFTA. I believe that the future belongs to countries
    committed to democracy, to free markets, and to closer integration of
    their economies and more trade. That's where the jobs and the incomes
    are; that's where the hope of a better life lies.
        Thank you very much.

    [At this point, Foreign Minister Fernando Solana Morales of Mexico made
    a statement.]

    Haitian Refugees

        Q. Mr. President, what is your reaction to the Supreme Court ruling
    on Haitian refugees?
        The President. I haven't had a chance to review it. I'm sorry, I
    haven't had a chance to review it.

    NAFTA

        Q. Are you frustrated by the fact that these negotiations, the
    bilateral negotiations, are taking so long and they don't seem to get
    anywhere yet?
        The President. No. I think that everything takes a little longer
    around here than I think it should. But I think we are getting
    somewhere, and I think that you will see these negotiations produce
    successful agreements. And I think we will go forward with the free
    trade agreement this year. I'm very hopeful.
        Q. Can I follow up on that, Mr. President? Don't you think with the
    full domestic agenda you have and the opposition to NAFTA in the United
    States, it's more likely to get a ratification, if at all, next year and
    not this year?
        The President. No. Because I think the issue has been, in effect,
    fully aired and debated before it comes up for ratification. And I think
    a lot of the questions that have been raised about it in the Congress
    are the very questions that are being debated and dealt with in the
    negotiations now going on between the countries. So I would expect that
    we can get successful consideration of it this year.
        And also, you know, I think this is another

    [[Page 912]]

    one of those battles of ideas in which we're engaged. But I believe very
    strongly that this will create jobs and increase incomes for people on
    both sides of the border. And I think if that argument is accepted, it's
    just as likely to be accepted this year as next year.

    Henry Leon Ritzenthaler

        Q. [Inaudible]--about the half-brother, is this gentleman your half-
    brother, do you know?
        The President. What did you say, Helen [Helen Thomas, United Press
    International]?
        Q. [Inaudible]--California. Same question, basically.
        The President. I placed a call today, but there was nobody home. I
    don't think I should say anything until after the call takes place.

    NAFTA

        Q. You do not have the votes in the House right now. Are you
    planning on launching a campaign in order to push forward for
    ratification of NAFTA?
        The President. I try to win the things that I support. When we can
    bring it up, we'll bring it up and try to win it. And I have been
    discussing this quite a bit, actually, in personal conversations with
    various Members of the House and Senate and getting advice, beginning to
    plot strategy. But of course, we'll have a campaign to do it. We can't
    prevail without a campaign; we have to try to win it.
        Thank you very much. One person from the Mexican press, we'll take
    one question. That's only fair.

    Drug Policy

        Q. Mr. President, do you have a new policy to fight drugs here, or
    do you have a new policy towards immigration?
        The President. We will, but I believe that the announcement of that
    should involve the drug czar, Mr. Brown, and others. And we will have
    something to say about that in the future.
        Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:10 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House.