Reaction to US Protests / More Renewable Energies

Protests in Washington. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Mexico will not intervene after yesterday’s protests in Washington that delayed the ratification of Joe Biden as president-elect. “We are not going to intervene in these matters that need to be resolved by the Americans, that is our policy. It is always sad when violence causes several deaths. In this we can have an opinion, otherwise, we do not take sides," the president said. Yesterday, thousands of pro-Trump supporters protested in Washington, D.C., as part of the Million MAGA March, which aimed to support President Donald Trump and back his claims of fraud in the US election. However, today, the US Congress confirmed President-elect Biden’s victory. He will be sworn on Jan. 20.

Mexican economy stable. López Obrador emphasized the Mexican currency and economy remain stable despite yesterday’s protests in the US. "Despite the recent events in the US Capitol, our economy remains strong and continues to improve." In addition, he said that Mexico would not see similar protests because the country is not polarized. "Only 25 percent of the population would like me to leave the government, 70 percent want me to continue and 5 percent is undecided, so what polarization?” the president said.

Mexico to renovate hydroelectric plants. López Obrador explained that the government will refurbish the country’s hydroelectric plants to comply with international and national environmental commitments. "There are around 60 hydroelectric plants in the country; however, they are not working as they should. We will modernize them to use the water from the reservoirs and generate more energy using modern turbines," the president said. López Obrador said that the government will renovate the hydroelectric plants because they are cleaner and cheaper. “We do it to respect legal frameworks because, in reality, it is expensive to buy wind energy from private companies,” the president added.

IFT could be integrated into the STC. López Obrador proposed that the Federal Institute of Telecommunications (IFT) be integrated into the Ministry of Communications and Transport (SCT). “IFT and STC’s operational areas are really similar and STC could make IFT work,” the president said. López Obrador added that several IFT management positions are linked to foreign companies, which is unacceptable.

López Gatell in Argentina. López Obrador announced that the Deputy Minister for Prevention and Health Promotion Hugo López-Gatell had traveled to Argentina to collect data on Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine that is being administered in that country. “López-Gatell went to Argentina to check if Mexico can buy this vaccine. Before making a decision, the government must review it carefully." On Dec. 23, Argentina became the first country in the world to approve the Russian vaccine against COVID-19. Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard reported that the Russian vaccine’s maker had filed a request to COFEPRIS to begin testing the vaccine in Mexico.

Mexico controlled the pandemic crisis better than US: Joe Biden. López Obrador said that during a call with Joe Biden, the US president-elect recognized that the attention and health plans related to the COVID-19 pandemic are better in Mexico than in the US. "I talked with Joe Biden about the pandemic and the importance of working together as a continent to decrease its effects. He told me that Mexican authorities are doing a better job controlling the pandemic than the US authorities," López Obrador said.

Click HERE for full transcript in Spanish