Last week, in this space I emphasized the preponderance of the protection and care of Mexicans abroad among the objectives of the Ministry of Foreign Relations. Following up on this priority instruction by the president Lopez Obrador and the chancellor Ebrard, the consular network of Mexico in North America works to advance in the issuance of documents for our nationals.
In response to the needs of the Mexican community in the northeastern region of the United States, the General Directorate of Consular Services will implement an emergent plan of five actions to be carried out during the last week of July and the month of August. The purpose is to specifically meet the high demand for consular procedures by the Mexican community concentrated around the states of Connecticut, New Jersey and, particularly, New York.
These actions include, as a first point, an increase in the efforts and resources of the Consulate General of Mexico in New York to meet the high demand for consular services in its constituency, for which additional personnel will be assigned to the documentation area. Second, there will be four Saturday days with extended hours to serve the community on weekends. The third point consists of accompanying these efforts with an extraordinary day of documentation in which 4,200 appointments will be offered distributed in the headquarters of the consulate and the three consulates on wheels that will be located in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. Fourth, we contemplate an open-door policy, both at the consulate headquarters and at the three consulates on wheels, through which some shifts will be enabled for people who arrive without an appointment, without additional charges. Finally, we are making headway in fighting head-on the grabbing of appointments by managers. Unduly appointments made by managers will be subject to cancellation.
He also previously commented that the dispatch of a contingent of more than 100 fire fighters to the province of Ontario, Canada, is a sign of North American solidarity, understanding and collaboration. This week, the Consul General of Mexico in Vancouver, Berenice Diaz, received a second group of firefighters who traveled from Mexico to the province of British Columbia, Canada. This happened as part of the binational collaboration that takes place within the Mexico-Canada Alliance (AMC). The government of Mexico, through the National Forestry Commission (Conafor), sent two contingents of combatants this month to contribute to the mitigation and extinction tasks of the more than 300 active forest fires that affect these Canadian provinces. These actions are yet another example of North American solidarity that encourage the spirit of regional cooperation.
Finally, it is worth mentioning the changes in the United States Embassy in our country, which is going through a period of transition in its leadership. After three years as Deputy Chief of Mission, of which a year and a half he was in charge of Business, the Minister Counselor said goodbye to our country John Creamer. I acknowledge your professionalism and wish you luck in your next professional stage after successful cooperation with our country.
On the other hand, we gave the warmest welcome to Stephanie Syptak-Ramnath, new charge d’affaires of the United States Embassy in Mexico. The Secretary Ebrard and the author of this text had the opportunity to meet last week with both officials to discuss the challenges and opportunities of the bilateral agenda. With Stephanie and the next ambassador we will continue the work that has allowed the excellent state of the bilateral relationship between Mexico and the United States.
* Lawyer and teacher in public policy. Head of the North America Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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