    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
    [March 31, 2006]
    [Pages 625-634]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's News Conference With President Vicente Fox Quesada of Mexico and Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada in Cancun
    March 31, 2006

        President Fox. Good morning. Welcome for your interest and your
    presence and attendance. We have come to an end in this productive
    meeting, as you well know, with bilateral meetings yesterday and today a
    trilateral meeting, a very productive one, followed by an enlarged
    meeting, trilateral-wise, with the attendance of the entrepreneurial
    community, business, and investment of our three countries.
    Consequently, we will give you full information.
        I would like to ask the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, to
    make some comments.

    [At this point, Prime Minister Harper spoke in French, which was
    translated as follows.]

        Prime Minister Harper. Thank you. Thank you, President Fox, and
    ladies and gentlemen. I'd like to thank President Fox first of all. It
    was a pleasure to meet President Fox and President Bush to discuss
    issues of importance to our countries and our common will to work
    together.
        In North America, we have an economy that is integrated; it is not
    necessary to differentiate our products. And we have discussed the
    progress accomplished in the Security and Prosperity Partnership of
    North America, and we are committed to considering the private sector.
    First of all, we believe that it is an engine of competitiveness, made
    up of members of the private sector, that will allow us to make our
    economies even more competitive.
        Our ministers will be working on this. They will be identifying our
    priorities, and they will make sure that they are followed up. We will
    be cooperating on issues of importance--on border security, management
    of urgent situations, as well as energy security. We will prepare a
    coordinated and exhaustive way to approach the issues of the bird flu,
    and we will be guided by common principles. Over the course of the next
    few months, we will be doing everything possible to ensure the security
    along our borders and to be able to move our merchandise back and forth.
    We will be working in the area of energy, the area of research and
    innovation, to be able to deal with clean technologies.
        We are happy with the discussions of our trade ministers on
    cooperation and of the negotiation of our countries, and we encourage
    them to follow up with this work.
        This meeting has been extremely productive. And Presidents Bush and
    Fox have accepted my invitation for the next summit meeting, which will
    take place in Canada in 2007.

    [Prime Minister Harper continued in English.]

        ----grateful for our host, President Fox, and to the workers here at
    the hotel and the Mexican people for their warm hospitality.
        Over the past 2 days, I've had the pleasure of meeting with
    President Fox and President Bush to discuss issues that jointly affect
    our three nations. I've been encouraged by the common will of our three
    nations. We are living today in an integrated economy. We cannot afford
    the politics of isolation.
        During my meetings with Presidents Bush and Fox, we reviewed the
    progress of our Security and Prosperity Partnership, which provides a
    framework to advance the common interests in areas of security,
    prosperity, and quality of life.
        We committed to further engage the private sector. We've agreed to
    set up a North American Competitiveness Council, made up of business
    leaders from all three countries, to advise us on ways to improve the

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    competitiveness of our economies. They will meet with our ministers,
    identify priorities, and make sure we follow up and implement them.
        We agreed to expand our existing cooperation on key issues such as
    border security, emergency management, and energy security. As an
    immediate priority, we'll develop a coordinated and comprehensive
    approach to preparing for a possible avian or pandemic influenza
    outbreak in North America. Our action will be guided by shared
    principles. We'll take concrete steps in the coming 24 months to improve
    the security at our borders and to ensure the smooth and efficient flow
    of goods and people, particularly--particular discussions with President
    Bush on the Windsor-Detroit Corridor.
        We'll collaborate on energy, especially with respect to innovation
    and science and technology, with the focus on clean technologies. We
    also welcome the discussions--the recent discussions by our trade
    ministers on NAFTA collaboration on trade negotiations with third
    countries. And we urge that this work be given priority.
        These talks were productive. And I'm, of course, very pleased that
    President Bush and President Fox have accepted my invitation to have the
    next leaders' meeting in Canada in 2007.
        Thank you.
        President Fox. President Bush.
        President Bush. Thank you for your hospitality. It's a really good
    choice to pick Cancun--as my press corps will tell you. They're looking
    forward to staying by the pool after I leave. [Laughter] It's a
    beautiful, beautiful part of the country.
        I want to thank you for your friendship as well. It's been a joy
    discussing very important issues with you over the course of my
    Presidency. And this is probably one of the most productive meetings
    we've had. It's been a pleasure to meet with Prime Minister Harper in
    his official capacity as the Prime Minister of Canada. I find him to be
    a very open, straightforward fellow. If he's got a problem, he's willing
    to express it in a way that's clear for all to understand. And that's
    the way I like to deal with people.
        We've got big goals for this very important relationship. One goal
    is prosperity. You can't achieve a standard of living increase for your
    people unless you have a prosperous neighborhood, and it's this
    prosperity that has been much of a focus on NAFTA. And one of my vows,
    and I know the other leaders share this goal, is to make sure that
    people are able to connect the NAFTA relationship with improvement of
    their own quality of life.
        I know there's deep concern about social justice throughout the
    neighborhood, and social justice can be achieved more likely if people
    are able to realize their dreams and if there's a prosperous society.
    And prosperity has been increased as a result of the trade between our
    nations. And we want to make sure that trade continues in a way that's
    fair and free but also in a way that enables our countries to be able to
    compete with the great challenges we face.
        And we face prosperity challenges from abroad like never before--the
    challenge of a growing Chinese economy or the challenge of an Indian
    economy. And my attitude is we shouldn't fear these challenges; we ought
    to welcome them and position ourselves so that we can compete. And I
    think the leaders share that sense of unity when it comes to being a
    competitive part of the world in the future.
        We talked about security. Look, we got long borders, and we got to
    make sure we work hard to secure the borders. We also have got to make
    sure we got smart borders. And so the whole vision of our borders has
    got to be to enhance trade and tourism but to prevent smugglers and
    terrorists and dope runners from polluting our countries. And I'm
    confident, with the use of technology and by close collaboration, we'll
    be able to achieve those objectives.

    [[Page 627]]

        I want to thank the CEOs and the business leaders from the three
    countries who are here. I thought we had a very constructive discussion
    about ways to make sure that there is harmonization between our
    industries so that the people benefit. And they brought some really good
    ideas.
        We talked about, of course, bird flu, avian flu, and the need to be
    prepared in case there is an outbreak. We spend a lot of time in my own
    country preparing for an avian flu outbreak, strategizing as how to
    coordinate efforts between the Federal, State, and local governments,
    working to wisely spend money to come up with, hopefully, a vaccine that
    would then be available for sharing around the world. And I do want to
    thank Canada for having taken the lead early in this issue and preparing
    the world for what is possible so that there's good information sharing
    if the bird flu were to break out in Southeast Asia, for example. But my
    point is, it's very important for us to share information and data and
    strategies amongst our three countries so that if this were to happen,
    there is a focused, coordinated, intelligent response.
        We talked about energy. My view of the energy initiative is that
    we've got to be wise about the resources we have and be smart about the
    investment for research and development so we can change our energy
    habits. The truth of the matter is, we'll all be better off if we use
    alternative sources of energy like ethanol or explore how to use hybrid
    batteries in a better way. I mean, there's some really interesting
    things coming down the pike, and I look forward to not only leading my
    own nation to spend money to be on the leading edge of technological
    change when it comes to energy but also sharing those technologies and
    ideas with our counterparts. Because we want to make sure that we've got
    national security concerns addressed when it comes to energy; we also
    want to be good stewards of the environment--and we can do both by the
    use of proper technologies.
        It's been a good meeting. I want to thank you for your leadership. I
    like coming to meetings where people put things on the table and we try
    to come up with solutions. And this has been such a meeting, Mr.
    President. Good job. Es todo.
        President Fox. Thank you. Thank you so much. Undoubtedly, these two
    days have brought about spaces for meeting of both friends and partners,
    and undoubtedly, we have made a very good use of time.
        The visit to Chichen-Itza was excellent, as well as yesterday
    evening's dinner, in a relaxed atmosphere but, likewise, creating this
    association and making a very productive association. Equally important
    were the different working meetings.
        We took advantage of time; we were not working isolated. We touched
    upon fundamental items in that meeting. First of all, we carried out an
    evaluation meeting. Then we got information about the development of
    programs. And then we gave the necessary instructions for the works that
    should be carried out in the next period of work.
        This is a most important thing, and this association has become a
    dynamic and professional process, a constructive process, a short-term
    action process, and great vision and perspective in a long term.
    Consequently, we have concluded that institutionalizing all these
    mechanisms is of utmost importance so that they will have continuity, so
    that there will be a followup--a necessary followup, so that they will
    be fruitful both at a short, middle, and long term.
        So we have established the next meeting. The Prime Minister of
    Canada has suggested and has invited us to Canada. Next June, we shall
    have, let's say, an information, evaluation, and results study of the
    work of this association, this Security and Prosperity Partnership. And
    we have carried out a series of actions that should be integrated in
    this report.
        First of all, I would like to make clear what has been the results
    of 12 years of joint work in the free trade agreement,

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    NAFTA. The three nations are fully satisfied of what we have been able
    to achieve. We have seen the fruits of work through this tool of
    cooperation, trade, and investment. Nonetheless, we're not fully
    satisfied. We have to give steps forward. We have many an opportunity
    and many a challenge.
        I want to mention two figures in reference to the results of NAFTA.
    Mexico has a commercial balance trade of $535 billion, the seventh in
    size throughout the world. And these would be a direct product of both
    trade and investment that has been carried out among the three partner
    countries. And then we should point out that every single State, border
    States with the United States had per capita income to December as of
    last year that go beyond to $10,000. The per capita average income has
    to do with $7,500--the highest in Latin America. Nonetheless, the
    borderline States are above $10,000 per capita income, and some of them
    have a per capita rate to $10,000.
        We're not talking about small numbers, small figures; we're talking
    about a concrete result of the efforts and work through trade. It is
    achieved through investment, and likewise, it is achieved through joint
    work, everybody's work. Behind all this, there's nothing else but work,
    work, and work.
        Now I would like to mention a couple of items in the goals. First,
    strengthen and maintain, growing, the free trade agreement, first of
    all. Benefits are evident, but before the new reality of the 21st
    century, we have decided to give steps forward and strengthen the
    relationship. Now we have the alliance both for security and prosperity.
    One item is as important as the other--shared responsibility an
    important element--one as important as the other. And that is what the
    three countries think.
        We started with the constitution of the North American
    Competitiveness Council, so as to consider public and private policies--
    face a challenge of our region. We want to institutionalize our
    mechanisms, have a clear project for the next month of June. It would
    imply mechanisms by means of which we will give the necessary importance
    and long-term action, something constant, and continuity should be
    achieved as well. That has been fruitful, and that can give very good
    results for our region. We are not renegotiating what has been
    successful or open the free trade agreement. It's going beyond the
    agreement, both for prosperity and security.
        Summarizing, we have to increase competitiveness of our economies,
    of our companies, our enterprises, our structures, and likewise, our
    technological and educational levels so as to face competition of other
    blocs in the world. We have to homogenize normotivity standards so as to
    have common standards to facilitate jobs and productivity. We have to
    make borders much more modern with technology so as to guarantee
    security but the good flow of commodities and products. We have invested
    a good amount of time to logistics, efficiency and efficacy in customs,
    topics that have to do with sharing--sharing these efficiencies.
        We are totally aware that we require infrastructure studies in the
    borderline areas so as to analyze needs, to facilitate both trade and
    passage of people and goods. This is fundamental; security is
    fundamental for our future development. It is a problem and a challenge
    shared by the three countries. Migration can only be solved in that we
    agree upon under the framework of a legislation that will guarantee our
    legal order, safe and respectful migration, respecting the rights of
    people.
        We have spoken about the collaboration of the three countries to
    support development and generation of opportunities for Central American
    countries and the Caribbean-area countries. We have seen an excellent
    level of relationships, and these are giving steps forward. They're
    better and better.
        We have more points of coincidence amongst the three countries. I
    would like

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    to thank the attendance, the presence, in this beautiful port of Cancun
    in this area of the Riviera Maya. You can see it is dynamic, a beautiful
    place, as it always has been. We receive millions of tourists every
    single year, people that come over, and we're proud to receive.
        We want to thank President Bush; we want to thank Prime Minister
    Harper--my acknowledgment, my thanks, and my commitment. We shall be
    working together, no doubt about it, to give steps forward in the field
    of prosperity and security. May you have a happy return back home. Thank
    you.
        For the question-and-answer period, we have two questions for the
    journalists of each country.

    Border Security/Trade

        Q. Good morning, Presidents and Prime Minister. President Fox, what
    are the concrete measures that Mexico is implementing to guarantee this
    indispensable security so as to have a legal, safe, and orderly
    migration?
        For President Bush and President Harper, do you consider that there
    should be a continuity on the economic policy in Mexico before the
    change of President in our country? Last but not least, how can the
    partners of NAFTA--can be competitive before the Asian countries if
    there are so many differences that are leading us to talk first about
    security, then productivity? And what are the unilateral decisions on
    migration matters? Thank you.
        President Fox. First, security--many actions have been implemented.
    Many actions have to do with close cooperation with the security
    authorities with the United States. This effort, headed by the
    representative of Homeland Security, Mr. Chertoff, and Minister of the
    Interior here in Mexico, Mr. Abascal, and the cooperation based upon
    mutual trust, coresponsibility, and what has to do with security in the
    borders.
        Likewise, we're doing our own work in cases of homicides and crimes
    among the different Mafias, the drug cartels. We shall continue working
    on this. There's a presence of Federal forces in the main points in the
    border, and then a great commitment to win the battle against organized
    crime and drug trafficking, particularly in the city of Nuevo Laredo. We
    have programs such as Programma OASISS, OASISS Program, so as to attack
    the people that are trafficking with people, with migrants. And
    fortunately, there are more than 120 in jail. And then we have a
    permanent program, 24 hours a day, so as to achieve this.
        We are working in the inner part and in the southern part of the
    country to stop migration flows that come from Central America that are
    crossing illegally the southern border of Mexico. And with all due
    respect to the dignity of these people, respecting their human rights,
    they are stopped; they remain on temporary bases and stations. They
    offer them services with dignity, and then we send them back to their
    communities of origin; 240,000 people--people that were detained, and
    then they were sent back to Central America.
        We are working jointly with the Central American Governments. We
    have spoken about the fact that the decision of Mexico is not only
    assuming our responsibilities migration-wise, but we have a firm
    commitment of generating jobs and employment. We're working jointly with
    Central America so as to achieve this, so each country will absorb our
    commitment and our total commitment generating opportunities within our
    own countries.
        And so this program, like the energy initiative for Central America,
    is one that has the purpose of bringing development and growth to the
    Central American economies. Thus we're working on a broad spectrum on
    the issue of security in all of its facets.
        President Bush. I don't see how you can be prosperous if you don't
    have security. I mean, it's--if people are concerned that, for example,
    the towns along the border aren't secure, it's going to be difficult to

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    keep prosperity alive. And so I appreciate the President's commitment to
    security along our border, and we've got--we share the same commitment.
    It's very important to enforce laws. Robust economy depend upon the rule
    of law, and therefore, when countries enforce law, it kind of creates
    the conditions for continued economic growth.
        When you have robust trade like we have, there are issues that come
    up. One way to look at it is if we had no trade, there would be no
    issues. And the more issues there are and the more opportunities there
    are to discuss them, the likelier it is these economies will continue to
    grow. And so I don't worry about having to deal with problems. As a
    matter of fact, I view the problems that have arisen as a result of
    complex and active trade as positive. And the fundamental question is,
    can we resolve these issues in a responsible way? And one of the reasons
    we meet is to put ourselves in a position to do so.
        You mentioned something about the elections. I'm not going to talk
    about them. The only thing I am going to talk about is I love to have a
    strong, vibrant democracy on our southern border. And I want to thank
    the President for his strong leadership and his recognition that
    democracy is a very important legacy of his administration, the previous
    administration, that we certainly hope there will be a peaceful
    transition of power, and I'm confident there will be one.
        Prime Minister Harper. Obviously, I don't want to get into the issue
    of Mexican politics, but I can say the same thing that I said yesterday
    with regard to the leadership of President Fox. We've had both bilateral
    and multilateral relationships progressively growing and without
    precedent. I trust that the President is going to leave a stronger
    economy that is shared, a firm democracy, respect for human rights, and
    faithfulness to the most important principles for our shared progress,
    for the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, and all
    the good results that come from a free market economy.
        All of these things lead to more progress, which we hope the next
    President will be able to build upon, which will benefit all of our
    countries.

    [Prime Minister Harper continued in English.]

        And I'll just repeat that I, obviously, do not intend to make any
    comments or get myself involved in Mexican politics, but I'll just
    repeat what I said yesterday, which is that President Fox has provided
    unprecedented leadership for both our bilateral and our trilateral
    relations, unprecedented progressive leadership.
        I believe that the legacy of that leadership will be to leave behind
    not just the strong democracy that believes in liberty and human rights
    but also loyalty and adherence to the principles that are--on which the
    success of our integrated economy is based. And those are the principles
    of NAFTA, the principles of our security and economic partnership, and,
    of course, the advantages of free markets from which all of our nations
    benefit.

    Immigration Reform

        Q. Thank you. Mr. President, would you veto an immigration bill that
    did not include a guest-worker program? And how do you counter the angry
    argument from conservatives on Capitol Hill who are saying that your
    demand for one could hurt the Republican Party this fall?
        President Bush. The migration issue has been a topic of discussion
    here, as you can imagine. I told the President exactly what I told our
    country, that, one, I expect the debate to bring dignity to America, in
    recognition that America is a land of immigrants and people ought to be
    treated with respect; and this debate ought to be a debate that does not
    pit neighbor against neighbor; that focuses on three elements. One is
    that we are a nation of laws and, therefore, must enforce our laws. And
    that

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    includes enforcing the laws of people coming into our country illegally.
        President Fox and I discussed this issue at length. I don't know if
    people recognize, but his Government, all aspects of the Mexican
    Government came together to send a clear message to the American people:
    The Mexican Government understands it has a responsibility, as well, to
    protect the border. It is a nation of law. You heard the President talk
    about not only enforcing the northern border but also the southern
    border.
        I also have said to the American people that we must enforce our
    laws in the interior of the country. Employers must be held to account
    if they're employing the people in our country illegally. However, part
    of the problem is--that complicates the lives of our many employers who
    are providing employment for people who are here illegally, is that
    there has been a lot of document forgery. There's an industry that has
    sprung up, and part of that industry is to provide forged documents so
    that our employers don't know whether a person is in our country legally
    or not.
        I also believe strongly that an important part of securing the
    border and enforcing our laws is to recognize there are people in our
    country doing work that Americans will not do. And those people ought to
    be given a chance to have a tamper-proof card that enables them to work
    in our country legally for a period of time. That's called a guest-
    worker program. One of the important issues about a guest-worker program
    is, what does that mean for someone's desire to become a citizen of our
    country? I believe if someone has been here in our country illegally,
    they should not get at the head of the line if they want to become a
    citizen. In other words, we have a line of people waiting, people who
    are in our country legally, waiting to become a citizen. And people who
    have been in our country illegally should not get ahead of the line who
    are there legally.
        A nation of laws can also be a welcoming nation, and I believe a
    guest-worker program will help us rid the society and the border of
    these coyotes who smuggle people in the back of 18-wheelers. I believe
    it will help get rid of the document forgers. I believe it will help
    people on both sides of our border respect the laws of our border and
    enforce our borders. I believe it is important to bring people out of
    the shadows of American society so they don't have to fear the life they
    live. I believe it's important for our Nation to uphold human rights and
    human dignity. And the plan I've just proposed is one that will do all
    that and achieve important objectives.
        And I'm looking forward to working with the Congress. We're making
    the--I told the President we're making progress. You know, there's a
    legislative process. It's--some guy, some wag one time put it, it's like
    watching people make sausage. It's kind of a--you know, probably appears
    a little unpleasant from your perspective. [Laughter] But we're making
    progress. And I want a comprehensive bill. And I've made that very clear
    to the Members of the Congress, and I will continue making it clear to
    Members of Congress.
        Q. [Inaudible]
        President Bush. So, no answer--I said I want a comprehensive bill.
    You're presuming there won't be a comprehensive bill; I believe there
    will be a comprehensive bill.

    Canada-U.S. Relations/Border Security

        Q. Mr. President, can you explain to Canadians----
        President Bush. Which one?
        Q. That would be you, Mr. Bush.
        President Bush. Me.
        Q. Could you explain to Canadians why they'll need to have a
    passport or an unspecified secure document before they cross over to the
    United States? And what would the impact be on both of our countries
    economically if Canada doesn't follow

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    through by the deadline of the end of next year?
        President Bush. I appreciate you bringing up this issue. This is an
    issue, obviously, that affects not only border crossings with Canada, it
    also affects border crossings with Mexico. The Congress passed the law,
    and I intend to enforce the law. But the law said there ought to be a
    passport or a passport-like document that, I believe, if properly
    implemented, will facilitate travel and facilitate trade, not hinder
    travel and trade. And the reason I believe that is, I think we can be
    wise about the use of technologies to--envision a card that can be
    swiped across a reading device that facilitates the movement of people.
        It's a--look, I understand this issue has created consternation.
    Your Prime Minister made it very clear to me that he's very worried that
    such a implementation of the law on the books will make it less likely
    people will want to travel between our countries. I've heard from
    business leaders who are concerned about the bookings for conventions.
    And so what I've told the Prime Minister and told President Fox, as
    well, is that we have an obligation to work very closely with our
    counterparts to provide a set of standards as to what will meet the
    obligations of the law.
        Again, I repeat to you: I believe this can be done in such a way
    that it makes future travel, future relations stronger, not weaker.
        Prime Minister Harper. Maybe I could just add to that. Obviously, we
    are concerned. I expressed those concerns to President Bush, and I know
    they've been expressed by Canadian business leaders as well. The
    President is confronted with legislation passed by Congress and has a
    responsibility to act upon that legislation, and we understand that. We
    understand the security concerns that are behind that.
        At the same time, we're obviously concerned that if we don't move
    quickly and properly on this, that this could have effects on trade and
    movement of people, conventions, you name it, that is not helpful to our
    economy or to relationships. So we've agreed that Minister Day and
    Secretary Chertoff will meet as soon as possible to make this their top
    priority.

    Democracy in Mexico

        Q. Mr. President Fox, two questions. The first is, our Senate last
    night passed a law, and I'd like to know what you're going to do. Will
    you veto that law, or will you leave the legislative packet to the next
    President of our country? And second, you have spoken and you have
    warned us Mexicans against populism and the demagogues who exist in
    campaigns, in Presidential campaigns, and that we are going through a
    very difficult stage. I'd like to ask if you already forgot the populist
    language that you used in your own Presidential campaign when you even
    talked about--[inaudible]--and things like that? What about talking
    about democracy using a populist language in the past, but now you are
    against candidates doing that.
        President Fox. In reference to the first item, the Ministry of the
    Interior will inform, on behalf of the Federal Government, our position.
    And I celebrate--I'm glad that both the Congress, the lower chamber and
    the upper chamber, have exercised their autonomy, their freedom. They
    have discussed and approved one more of the many laws that have been
    approved in our country in this last 5 years of democratic and
    respectful Government--the autonomies and the independence on the other
    two powers. As never before, we have lived this reality that has been
    positive, fruitful, in reference to the application of our autonomy and
    constitutional freedom that all the other powers have.
        Now, in reference to the second item, I can only say--and I will say
    it very clearly--from the second of July and since the second of July of
    the year 2000, there has been absolute freedom, and that is of utmost
    importance for all of us. Every single

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    person should express according to his own decision and convenience, by
    all means, respecting the rights of third parties. But above all this,
    we have the freedom of both Mexicans, ladies and gentlemen, that work in
    the mass media: press; newspapers; journals; TV. We have now a freedom
    that we never had in the past. Every single citizen in our country
    nowadays exercises this freedom openly. This is one of the great fruits
    and results of democracy won in the second of July of the year 2000.

    Iran

        Q. President Bush, Secretary of State Rice is finding common ground
    with the British today on the view that the next step against Iran could
    be sanctions. Do you agree that's the way to go if Iran fails to comply
    with the Security Council's 30-day deadline on its nuclear program?
        President Bush. Thanks. First, I do want to offer my country's
    assistance to the people affected by the recent earthquakes in Iran. We
    obviously have our differences with the Iranian Government, but we do
    care about the suffering of Iranian people.
        There is common agreement that the Iranians should not have a
    nuclear weapon, the capacity to make a nuclear weapon, or the knowledge
    as to how to make a nuclear weapon. And the reason there's common
    agreement is because the Iranian Government with such a weapon, as is
    now constituted, would pose a serious threat to world security.
        Condoleezza Rice is in Europe today to
    discuss with the P-5, the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council
    plus Germany, a strategy to go forward in a unified way that says to the
    Iranian Government, the world rejects your desires to have a nuclear
    weapon. Condi is strategizing with those who will be making the U.N.
    Security Council decisions as to that united front. In other words, we
    agree on a goal. Now the question is, how do we work together to achieve
    that goal? And you're watching Secretary of State Rice work with our
    friends to remind the Iranians on a regular and consistent basis that if
    they want to be--participate in the international order of things, if
    they don't want to isolate themselves, they must listen very carefully
    to what we are saying with unified voice.

    Murder Investigation in Cancun

        Q. My question is to President Fox, and I wonder if we could prevail
    upon you, sir, to answer it in English. A few weeks ago, there was a
    very bloody murder here with the Ianiero family in Cancun. Two young
    Canadian mothers are very concerned, back in Canada, that Mexican
    authorities have mistakenly made them suspects amidst concerns, also in
    Canada, the Mexicans may have bungled this investigation. Can you tell
    us where this investigation is going, and can you assure those two young
    women, indeed, they are not suspects?
        President Fox. Well, we are absolutely sorry, and we have our, well,
    feelings that a crime has been carried out here in a hotel in Cancun.
    The attorneyship office is working, both the Federal one and the local
    one--they're working on the investigation. When the data is ready and
    when they finally decide, we can claim which are the guilty people. As
    of now, that is the only information we have at hand. We're working
    closely. We are reporting to the Government and the authorities of
    Canada. Investigation is being carried out. So far we cannot make any
    further comments. Thank you.
        Prime Minister Harper. ----say that we do appreciate the full
    cooperation of the Mexican Government, Mexican police at all levels.
    There has been consultation with our officials, and I've spoken to the
    RCMP, and they assure me that that has been the case, particularly since
    the commitments made by Secretary Derbez in Ottawa. So we are working
    together in this; we're fully apprised of the situation. I can just add
    one small thing, which is that we're told once again, and I think we've
    been saying

    [[Page 634]]

    this repeatedly for some time, there is no extradition pending--
    extradition demand pending, nor is there one anticipated in the near
    future. And that's probably about all I can say.
        President Fox. Muchas gracias.

    Note: The news conference began at 10:45 a.m. in the Fiesta Americana
    Condesa Cancun Hotel. President Fox spoke in Spanish, and his remarks
    were translated by an interpreter. Prime Minister Harper referred to
    Minister of Public Safety Stockwell Day of Canada; and Secretary of
    Foreign Affairs Luis Ernesto Derbez Bautista of Mexico. President Fox
    referred to Secretary of Government Jose Carlos Maria Abascal Carranza
    of Mexico.