Mexico City: According to Mexico’s government, on Wednesday, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard‘ and his Saudi Arabian partner finally agreed to work on their bilateral economic ties on the first day of the diplomat’s 10-day tour of the Middle East and India.

Ebrard and Saudi Foreign Minister ‘Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud’ planned to invest in the tourism sector and innovation, as well as highlight the need for a direct flight between Mexico and Saudi Arabia, as per the statement of the Foreign Minister.

Foreign Minister further added that these two diplomats are coming to the conference in order to represent their countries at the Group of 20 major economies and spoke of the need to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Ukraine.

Ebrard and bin Farhan, who both belonged to oil-producing countries, discussed the importance of keeping energy prices stable amid conflict, as per the statement.

Ebrard is planning to stay in Riyadh until March 225; then, he plans to visit Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and India.

History:

Both nations are mutual members of the G-20 major economies and the United Nations. Mexico and Saudi Arabia founded diplomatic relations on 12 September 1952. On 31 July 1975, Mexican President Luis Echeverría paid a five-day visit to Saudi Arabia and met with King Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in Jeddah. The two leaders also discussed current events taking place in the Middle East at the time.

Saudi Crown Prince Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud visited Mexico in October 1981 to attend the North-South Summit and met with Mexican President José López Portillo. Both countries established embassies in each other’s capitals in 1981. Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa Cantellano visited Saudi Arabia in June 2010. Mexican Foreign Minister José Antonio Meade visited Saudi Arabia in March 2014.