“We are guided not by propaganda, but by science”

Mexico will start producing the Russian vaccine approximately in late May – early June. Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said this in an interview with Izvestia., noting that negotiations on the possibility of turning the Latin American state into the final stage of the drug’s production are in full swing. The politician also talked about why Mexico approved Sputnik V so quickly, and how the country’s population views the policies of the new US President Joe Biden…

“The approval was immediate.”

– Recently, the fourth batch of Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine was delivered to Mexico. It should be noted that it was Mexico that was the first country in North America to register a Russian drug. Could the decision be said to have saved the region from vaccine shortages, instilling confidence despite Western skepticism? How many percent of the country’s population have already been vaccinated? And how many of them did Sputnik V receive?

– Until now, Mexico has introduced about 1.5 million doses of vaccines, this covers about 550 thousand people. We hope that more parties will arrive in May and we will continue the campaign. In total, approximately 12% of the population in Mexico is vaccinated. As for the approval of the Russian vaccine, as soon as information about this drug appeared, we contacted the manufacturers… They sent us their trial dose as well as Argentina. We received an assessment from two scientists and it became clear that this is a worthwhile vaccine. The approval was immediate… We are not guided by propaganda, but by science. That’s why Sputnik V was approved so quickly because it shows good results…

– The Mexican company Birmex, together with RDIF, are working on organizing the bottling and packaging of the Russian vaccine. In addition, at a press conference after your meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, you said that Mexico is considering the possibility of long-term cooperation. How many doses will Mexico be able to produce this year?

– Birmex is a state-owned company that was established a long time ago. She has extensive experience in Mexico, for example, in the production of polio vaccines. Birmex sent these drugs to many countries in Latin America at one time. It is this company that President of the country Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and instructed to start the production of a vaccine against coronavirus, concluding a contract with RDIF. They have already done this, the parties are rapidly approaching to turn Mexico into the final stage of the drug’s production.… On April 30, I will have negotiations on this issue, we will discuss how this can be done in the near future. As for the timing, we will roughly start producing the vaccine in late May – early June.

– Will Mexico start exporting Sputnik V to other states? In this case, cooperation will be established only with the countries of Latin America?

– Establishing production is a goal not only for Mexico, but possibly for other countries in the region.… As the turnover increases, other countries will have more opportunities to get the vaccine, which is why we are so interested in participating in its production. Over time, countries in the other part of the world will probably be attracted, but now we are greatly concerned about the states of Central America and the Caribbean, because they have almost no vaccines.

– In addition to cooperation in the field of healthcare, Moscow and Mexico City plan to sign an agreement on cooperation in space exploration for peaceful purposes. Why did Mexico choose the Russian Federation as a partner for this?

– On April 28, a dialogue took place between scientists from both countries. Mexico was represented by a team of scientists working on Mexican vaccines currently in clinical trials. From Russia came the scientists who created Sputnik V, as well as the team working on another Russian drug, Vector. It was a very useful dialogue. We expect that these contacts will become the basis for long-term cooperation between our countries, and not just during the pandemic.

With regard to space exploration, it is worth noting that Latin America has created its own regional space agency (Space Agency of Latin America and the Caribbean. – Izvestia). There are many reasons why this is so important to us, but the crucial one is 5G technology.… There seems to be a great need in society for these communication technologies, and therefore we will work on it.

– What other areas of cooperation are opening up for our countries? Do you plan to launch other joint projects in the near future?

– I am sure that other areas of cooperation are also open for us. As I already noted at the meeting with Sergei Lavrov, the Mexican delegation will be represented at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. I think this will give an impetus to the development of cooperation between our countries in many other areas.

“We are waiting for a positive response from the Biden administration.”

– With the coming to the post of US President Joe Biden, the wall on the border with Mexico “fell”, nevertheless, the problem of illegal migration remains one of the most discussed in the new US administration. As a result, Joe Biden decided to increase the refugee admission quota. Does Mexico City hope that the new head of the White House will help resolve this crisis without prejudice to the interests of the Mexican side?

– Mexico with Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and ECLAC (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean at the UN. – Izvestia) prepared a development plan for these countries and southern Mexico. It has already been presented both in many local forums and in the USA.… We are now trying to find the best solution to this crisis. It is important that people have the opportunity to choose where they were born, so that they are not forced to emigrate due to poverty in their country. We are waiting for the US reaction to this plan.… Greetings that they have already committed $ 4 billion for humanitarian aid and development. We will look for alternatives that free citizens from the need to emigrate due to poverty. This is our goal. We await a positive response from the Joe Biden administration and hope to receive it as soon as possible.

– Does the population of Mexico meet Joe Biden’s policy with more optimism than the actions of Donald Trump?

– Of course, much more positively. Joe Biden has pledged to grant official status to 11 million illegal migrants, most of whom are Mexicans. We welcome this very much.… As for the DACA program (the program for deferring the deportation of arrived children, which was canceled by Donald Trump – Izvestia), “dreamers”, as they are also called, these young people studying in the United States, at some point could be expelled from states. It was now clear that they would remain. So that we see a more favorable policy towards usand of course we welcome her.

“Vaccines are the solution”

– Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an article dedicated to the anniversary of diplomatic relations between Russia and Mexico that the authorities are considering the possibility of introducing a mutual visa-free regime for citizens of both countries. Are there any progress in these negotiations?

– Electronic permission to enter Mexico for Russians has existed for about ten years… The Mexicans, for example, do not have such an opportunity, unlike the citizens of Russia. Russians can get permission to travel to Mexico very quickly and without problems. Both sides want the issue of creating a visa-free regime to be resolved. We’re going to do it… As soon as we know the final decision, we will communicate it.

– Russian tourists often choose Mexico as a holiday destination, especially in the coronavirus, when most of the world is closed. Nevertheless, until now, Mexico City can only be reached from Moscow via Istanbul. When is it planned to restore direct flights with the Russian Federation?

– It should be noted that Mexico did not close borders or limit flights. In fact, it all depends on the airlines, because the number of flights has dropped significantly due to the pandemic.… At the same time, we did not plan to close the airports of Mexico and prohibit any airline from arriving in our country, be it commercial airlines or charter flights. For example, many charters fly from Russia to Mexico, primarily to Cancun. We will be in dialogue with companies to help them restore their normal operating hours and increase the number of flights as soon as possible. Of course, we are hindered by a pandemic, but vaccines are the solution. The more people get vaccinated, the faster tourism will revive. We hope this helps.…

– Is Mexico planning to create vaccination certificates to promote safe tourism?

– In Mexico now this topic is widely discussed: to issue certificates or not. It is believed that you only need to make a limit on the number of tourists arriving in the country. But, we think that if the majority of travelers report that they have been vaccinated, this will contribute to the restoration of tourist flow… Of course, everything will depend on the countries that decide to create passports. For example, Russia is now issuing such documents.