By MARIA VERZA, Associated Press
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A high-level United States delegation on Monday invited Mexico to participate in a push to shift semiconductor production from Asia to North America and expand the production of electric vehicles.
Mexico Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to President Andrés Manuel López Obrador about recently passed legislation that would provide $28 billion in incentives for semiconductor production, $10 billion for new manufacturing of chips, and $11 billion for research and development.
López Obrador, for his part, explained his plan to make the northern border state of Sonora a leader in lithium, electric vehicle, and solar energy production, Ebrard said. Lithium is a key component of batteries for electric vehicles. The president said last month he had already discussed the idea with U.S. President Joe Biden.
The U.S. delegation was in Mexico for a new round of High-Level Economic Dialogue. The U.S. side was represented by Blinken, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jayme White, and Juan González, the National Security Council’s senior director for the Western Hemisphere.
The dialogue, which was launched by then-Vice President Joe Biden in 2013, resumed last year in Washington after stopping during the Trump administration.
The global shortage of semiconductors has slashed into the production of autos, household appliances, and other goods, fueling high inflation. Biden appeared at the future site of a massive Intel plant in Ohio on Friday.
Last month, López Obrador said the government had created the state-run lithium company that would be in charge of the exploration and extraction of the mineral. Mexico nationalized lithium production in May.
Asked about ongoing trade disputes between the U.S. and Mexico in the energy sector, Ebrard said there was a separate process for resolving those disagreements and that it was not an agenda item for these meetings.
Ahead of the talks, Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols, who is also attending, said one of the priorities for the talks was promoting development in southern Mexico and Central America.
U.S. border agents’ encounters with migrants from the Northern Triangle countries -- El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala -- have been running lower this year than last, despite overall encounters at the border being up this year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data. Encounters with Mexican migrants have also been higher for most of the past year.