López Obrador and Biden hold first conversation as heads of state

The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, held their first conversation as heads of state with the new president of the United States, Joe Biden, on Friday, in which they discussed issues such as migration, the covid-19 pandemic and development cooperation.

"We spoke with President Biden, he was kind and respectful. We discussed issues related to migration, #COVID19 and cooperation for development and well-being," López Obrador said in a message.

"Everything indicates that relations will be good for the good of our peoples and nations," added the Mexican leader, who shared a photograph in which he was accompanied by foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard and the former head of the office of the presidency, Alfonso Romo.

In a statement, the Mexican Foreign Ministry said that the call took place from the city of Monterrey, in the north of the country, and in it, López Obrador congratulated President Biden on his recent inauguration, expressed his best wishes for his administration and expressed his government's willingness to work together on the broad bilateral agenda.

The note indicated that during the conversation, the Mexican president celebrated the recognition of the contributions of the Mexican migrant community in the US and reiterated Mexico's thesis, according to which the fundamental solution to the phenomenon of migration involves the promotion of development in the communities of origin.

Both presidents agreed that the teams from both countries will work together to advance a common approach to development and well-being.

In addition, they discussed the challenge posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and stressed that effective cooperation between nations is needed to combat it.

Biden's call with López Obrador came after he spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who was the first foreign leader he called since he came to power last Wednesday.

The phone contact came a day after López Obrador said in his morning press conference that there was no need for a call between the two leaders, given that high-level officials from both governments "are already linked".

"There is no need, we wish him well and there will be no problem with us. He knows that and we know that we are not going to have any problems with his government," said the Mexican.

López Obrador, who met Biden in 2012 when he was vice-president of the United States, had already spoken to the Democrat by telephone on 19 December after he was declared president-elect.

"We reaffirmed our commitment to work together for the well-being of our peoples and nations," López Obrador revealed on his social networks at the time.

Since Biden took office, López Obrador has said on several occasions that he agrees with the Democrat's "main proposals", especially on immigration, and has welcomed the suspension of the construction of the border wall.