Mexico–Poland relations

Mexico-Poland relations

Mexico
Poland

Mexico-Poland relations refers to the bilateral relations between Mexico and Poland. Both nations are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the United Nations.

History

During Spanish colonization of Mexico from 1519 - 1810, any relations between New Spain and the Commonwealth of Poland would have been via-Spain. After some time, while Mexico was obtaining its independence from Spain, Poland, by contrast, was finding itself being invaded and split between the Kingdom of Prussia, Austro-Hungarian empire and the Russian empire. At the end of World War I and after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, Poland obtained its independence once more.

In September 1921, Mexican President Alvaro Obregon recognized the national sovereignty of Poland. That same year, Polish Prince Albert Radziwill, who was head of the Polish Legation in Washington, DC, United States; met with Mexican diplomats in the city, thus establishing the first official contact between the two nations.[1] However, it was not until 26 February 1928 that diplomatic relations between the two countries were formally established. In 1930, Mexico and Poland signed a Treaty of Amity, Commerce and Navigation and Mexico soon opened its first Diplomatic Legation in Warsaw.[2]

Orphaned Polish children in Santa Rosa, Guanajuato.

In the 1930s, diplomatic relations between the two nations became difficult with the rise of Adolf Hitler in neighboring Germany to the west of Poland and the ever expanding Soviet Union to the east. In August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union signed an non-aggression treaty stating that they would not attack one another if a war broke out in Europe and that they would share between them the territory of Poland. This treaty was to be known as the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. During World War II, diplomatic relations between Mexico and Poland never ceased. Mexico vehemently condemned the invasion and occupation of Poland by both German and Soviet troops. In May 1942, Mexico declared war on Germany. To show solidarity with the Polish people, Mexico accepted in 1943 over 2,000 Polish refugees including 1,400 Polish orphans to settle in the state of Guanajuato in central Mexico. After the war, many of the refugees remained to live in Mexico.[3]

At the end of World War II, Mexico continued to maintain diplomatic relations with communist Poland. In 1960, both nations elevated their diplomatic missions to that of embassies.[2]

State visits

In 1963, Prime Minister Józef Cyrankiewicz became the first Polish head of state to visit Mexico. In 1963, the visit was reciprocated by Mexican President Adolfo López Mateos. From then on, diplomatic relations continued unabated even when Poland transitioned from having a communist government to a democratic one in 1989. In 1998, Polish Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek paid an official visit to Mexico. In May 2004, Mexican President Vicente Fox paid a state visit to Poland. In 2004, President of Poland Alexander Kwasniewski attended the Latin-America and European Union Summit being held in Guadalajara, Mexico.[2]

Trade

In 1997, Mexico signed a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union, of which Poland is a member of since joining in 2004. Since then, trade between the two nations has increased dramatically. In 2014, two-way trade between the two nations amounted to $1 billion USD.[4][5] Poland is Mexico's 47th most important trading partner globally. Between 1999 and 2012, Polish direct investment to Mexico amounted to $17 million USD.[5] During that same period, Mexican direct investment to Poland amounted to approximately $4 million USD.[6]

Resident diplomatic missions

See also

References

  1. ↑ Beyond Politics: Cultural Connections Among Mexico, Romania and Poland
  2. 1 2 3 History of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Poland (in Spanish)
  3. ↑ Hacienda Santa Rosa: a Polish Refuge in Mexico
  4. ↑ Mexican Ministry of the Economy: Poland (in Spanish)
  5. 1 2 México y Polonia fortalecen vínculos comerciales y de inversión (in Spanish)
  6. ↑ LA COOPERACIÓN ECONÓMICA ENTRE POLONIA Y MÉXICO (in Polish and Spanish)
  7. ↑ Embassy of Mexico in Warsaw (in Polish and Spanish)
  8. ↑ Embassy of Poland in Mexico City (in Polish and Spanish)
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