As Carlos Fuentes. the Mexican novelist and former Ambassador to France. has reminded us. "Mexico is a nation. not an oil well." We tend to take for granted our good fortune in having Mexico and Canada as continental neighbors. This fortunate situation makes it unnecessary for us to fortify our bordersunlike the situation in many parts of the world. There are. of course. problems between the United States and Mexicosuch as Mexican oil. trade. narcotics traffic. illegal immigrationand it is. in part. to continue the dialog on these problems that President Lopez Portillo is coming to Washington. These are not matters for open conflict between our nations. Rather they are subjects for continuing discussions within a framework of cooperative spirit. As I noted. the gas agreement could set the stage for a new era in our relationship. This agreement alone will not sustain a strong relationship. The problems of undocumented workers. narcotics traffic. trade. and tariff matters are all issues that must be addressed. I hope that the gas agreement will provide the impetus for progress in these other areas. Perhaps the greatest need in United StatesMexican relations is for mutual comprehension.
Keywords matched
undocumented illegal immigrationand