Baku, September 14, AZERTAC
For the fifth consecutive time, the Embassy of Mexico in Azerbaijan organizes an official reception on the occasion of the national holiday - Independence Day, a celebration that has become a tradition for friends of Mexico in the capital of Azerbaijan. El Grito de Dolores, as this celebration is called, is considered the act that startes the Mexican War of Independence. Based on the story, "El Grito de Dolores" consisted of the call that the priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla made to his parishioners to stand up against the authorities of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, the dawn of September 16, 1810. So he rang the bells of the parish of Dolores, today municipality of Dolores Hidalgo, state of Guanajuato. This event is commemorated every year, since it is considered the beginning of the process that culminated with the Independence of Mexico.
On September 13, the Embassy of Mexico celebrated this event at the Landmark Hotel facilities. Ambassador Rodrigo Labardini opened the event with a speech and presentation on the history and dynamics of Mexico-Azerbaijan bilateral relations. In this way, he informed that during the activity of this Diplomatic Representation, commerce grew more than 10 times, reaching more than $ 26 million in 2018. He highlighted the significant growth in bilateral tourism: 9% in the flow of Mexican tourists in Azerbaijan and 20% in the flow of Azerbaijani tourists in Mexico. He also indicated that only in the 2017-2018 period, Mexican exports to Azerbaijan increased 35.74%, while Azerbaijani exports to Mexico also increased by 12.44%. Currently, Mexican products have a presence in various sectors of Azerbaijan, among which stand out the agricultural, food, industrial, oil and automotive sectors.
Mexico and Azerbaijan are relevant actors in their respective regions, as they constitute important centers of commerce, transport and transit, in addition to their importance in energy matters. Geographical distance does not hamper bilateral cooperation. On the contrary, it shows the wide spectrum of opportunities for collaboration in many sectors: oil and gas, commerce, tourism, culture, sport, etc. In this way, mutual discovery and greater knowledge enables effective collaboration and stable development.
Diplomatic relations between Mexico and Azerbaijan were established on February 10, 1992. The first Embassy of Azerbaijan in Latin America opened in Mexico in 2007 and, seven years later, in 2014, the first Embassy of Mexico in the Caucasus region opened, precisely in Azerbaijan.