MEXICO: Newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Earl Anthony Wayne is officially presented in Mexico City, says he will continue to work to strengthen the partnership between Mexico and the United States

Record ID: 303995

  • Title: MEXICO: Newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Earl Anthony Wayne is officially presented in Mexico City, says he will continue to work to strengthen the partnership between Mexico and the United States
  • Date: 15th September 2011
  • Summary: MEXICO CITY, MEXICO (SEPTEMBER 13, 2011) (REUTERS) NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MEXICO EARL ANTHONY WAYNE WALKING INTO ROOM WAYNE DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MEXICO, EARL ANTHONY WAYNE, SAYING: "First, I think the importance right now is to focus on our ongoing partnership and to work very hard each day to day to enhance the security on both sides of the border. We're working very well together and we're going to keep doing our very best to be good partners in this effort which I know is so important to the citizens of Mexico and also to the citizens of the United States and we hope that that partnership will just get better and better." CAMERAMAN (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MEXICO, EARL ANTHONY WAYNE, SAYING: "Secondly, on Wikileaks, it's the job of diplomats all over the world, whether they be the ambassador of Mexico and Washington or the American ambassador in Mexico City to keep their governments informed and we will find good ways to do that and we'll find good ways to build this relationship. Thank you." WAYNE LEAVING ROOM AFTER NEWS CONFERENCE
  • Embargoed: 30th September 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Mexico, Mexico
  • Country: Mexico
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA3TMGYBM9S0PTGOO45FRQA3TOL
  • Story Text: The new U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Earl Anthony Wayne, was formally presented to the Mexican government on Tuesday (September 13) after the post vacated when Washington's last envoy stepped down in a public spat.
    Wayne was presented during a ceremony at the Presidential Palace of Los Pinos in Mexico City.
    "First, I think the importance right now is to focus on our ongoing partnership and to work very hard each day-to-day to enhance the security on both sides of the border. We're working very well together and we're going to keep doing our very best to be good partners in this effort which I know is so important to the citizens of Mexico and also to the citizens of the United States and we hope that that partnership will just get better and better," Wayne told a news conference.
    The U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed Wayne as U.S. ambassador on August 2.
    The former ambassador, Carlos Pascual, resigned in March following a public dispute with Mexican President Felipe Calderon over embassy documents released by the whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks.
    When questioned about Wikileaks, Wayne said:
    "Secondly, on Wikileaks, it's the job of diplomats all over the world, whether they be the ambassador of Mexico and Washington or the American ambassador in Mexico City to keep their governments informed and we will find good ways to do that and we'll find good ways to build this relationship. Thank you".
    Wayne, a senior career diplomat, was nominated by President Barack Obama in June to succeed Pascal in Mexico. Wayne previously served as U.S. deputy ambassador to Afghanistan.
    The United States and Mexico have long lauded their close economic ties and cooperation on security issues, with more than $1 billion in U.S. aid being funneled to Mexican forces to battle the drug cartels.
    But a diplomatic fight erupted after State Department documents published by WikiLeaks showed Pascual criticizing Mexican authorities' lack of coordination in operations targeting cartel leaders.
    Calderon harshly criticized Pascual in a newspaper interview in February, saying the American diplomat had shown "ignorance" and distorted what was happening in Mexico.
    Mexico and the United States trade more than $1 billion a day across their long border and in recent years stepped up intelligence sharing in operations to bring down major drug traffickers.
    When Pascual stepped down, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said he had resigned "to avert issues raised by President Calderon that could distract from the important business of advancing our bilateral interests".
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