Reaction to Ottawa's decision to reinstate visas for Mexican nationals was swift.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador called Ottawa's decision Wednesday a unilateral and disrespectful approach.
Now Canada is in the same situation, it wants to take action against Mexico. We are very sorry, they are in negotiations to reach an agreement so that we can control the migration flows from Canada, as I have always done, he said.
And we have acted generously with them, with Prime Minister Trudeau's government, but they were already on the verge of taking unilateral measures now that elections are taking place in Mexico, he lamented.
Regarding the meeting of the three North American leaders, Mr. Obrador indicated that he would not be present at the Three Amigos Summit scheduled to take place in Quebec in April.
If there is no respectful interaction, I won't take part. Plus, I only have seven months left [pour quitter la présidence] and I don't like traveling that much. I love traveling here to Palenque [au Chiapas]; I feel very comfortable and healthy here. There was a very good atmosphere, he said.
An important step
On the Quebec side, Immigration Minister Christine Fréchette highlighted that Quebec received almost half of the asylum seekers arriving in Canada in 2023, stating that 25% were Mexican nationals.
This announcement from the federal government is evidence of Quebec's ability to make its voice heard in Ottawa. It's an important step that has just been taken, but it won't solve everything, she said.
The number of asylum seekers admitted to Quebec is far too high and our services are at capacity. The federal government must distribute asylum seekers across Canada. Quebec assumes a disproportionate share of the responsibility for receiving asylum seekers. The federal government must respond quickly to all of our inquiries, she emphasized.
For conservative MP Pierre-Paul Hus, the Liberals should have done it [les] Listen over a month ago. How many people linked to organized crime returned to Canada while the Liberals were slow to do so, he explained.
For his part, the bloc's deputy, Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, said there was a problem, a gap that needed to be closed.
People may have several reasons for moving and improving their lives and those of their families. “We find the idea of putting obstacles in the way of the Mexicans quite strange on the part of the Liberals,” explained NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice.
With information from Louis Blouin