Consul General Discusses Mexico’s Perspective on Trade & Immigration

RCB President Gordon Martin and Rotarians Michael Johnson, Honorary Consul General of Germany, and Mark Jackson, Honorary Consul General of Japan, with Consul General Diaz de Leon

On March 20, 2024, the Rotary Club of Birmingham (RCB) welcomed Javier Diaz de Leon, Consul General of Mexico in Atlanta. He discussed "Mexico's Perspective on Trade & Immigration."

The Consul General shared the bilateral relationship between the United States and Mexico, with both countries’ diplomats and officials collaborating regularly to address issues such as security, development, mobility, immigration, economies, trade and the environment.

“We have a deeply complex collaboration, a deeply complex relationship that affects the lives of millions of people on both sides of the border,” Consul General Diaz de Leon said. “The Mexican government and the U.S. government collaborate on a daily basis.”

He provided an overview of trade between the two countries, totaling $800 billion and making Mexico the top trading partner in the world. He explained that many components, including automotive parts, vehicles, oil & gas, computer parts, machinery and manufacturing products cross the international borders multiple times during the course of production, due to supply chains being set up where they can be the most effective. He stressed that 5 million American jobs rely on trade with Mexico.

“This is a manufacturing alliance. What we have built in North America is probably the most efficient manufacturing region in the world. We build stuff together…Cars cross the border during the manufacturing process at least 80 times. We don’t have Mexican or American or Canadian cars, we have North American cars.”

The Consul General addressed the challenges of immigration, with focus on wellbeing, addressing the structural causes, and the goal to establish safe and legal migration. He focused on the need for regional cooperation.

“We know that there are no free solutions, no easy solutions, no ‘one-way’ solutions. Solutions need to be addressed together in a collaborative way.”

Consul General Diaz de Leon celebrated all the of the commonalities between the U.S. and Mexico, including 2 million Americans living in Mexico and 11.5 million Mexicans living in the U.S.

“We share so many things. We share a common history, we share geography, we share the past, we share the future…A good future for the U.S. is a good future for Mexico.”

Bio for Consul General Javier Diaz de Leon

Consul General Javier Diaz de Leon holds a Bachelors degree in International Relations from the Universidad Iberoamericana and a Master of Arts in International Conflict Analysis from the University of Kent.

Diaz has been a member of the Mexican Foreign Service since 1991 and has held the rank of Ambassador since 2017. During his diplomatic career, he has held various positions: Deputy Consul General in San Diego, Deputy Consul General in New York, Head of the Office for Migration and Hispanic Affairs at the Embassy of Mexico in the United States, and Executive Director of the Institute for Mexicans Abroad of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Mexico City.

From June 2013 to May 2016, Diaz served as Consul General of Mexico in Raleigh, North Carolina. In May 2016, he was appointed as Consul General of Mexico in Atlanta, Georgia. The Consulate General of Mexico in Atlanta oversees the states of Georgia, Alabama and most of Tennessee. Since May 2021, Diaz has been Dean of the Atlanta Consular Corps.