Mexican President bridging friendship at Chactemal

Felipe Calderon

As we reported in Friday’s newscast, President Felipe Calderon will be leaving office in the next few days. One of the outstanding projects between Belize and Mexico is the international bridge which was completed back in 2009 but was not inaugurated because the construction of a stretch of road by Belize, did not take place; a fact which the Mexican press has made much ado about. The new bridge, border facilities and access road are called Chactemal and were constructed at a cost of seventeen point eight million US dollars. On Friday afternoon in the presence of members of the Belize Cabinet, Calderon commissioned the facilities. The president noted the importance of the bridge to develop trade.

Felipe Calderon, President, Mexico (Translated)

“I welcome this important work which will strengthen trade and ties between the people of Mexico and the beloved people of Belize. Without a doubt, it will result in greater economic development for the region and create more opportunities for the advancement of families both from this great state of Quintana Roo as well as for the country of Belize. As you can imagine, the facility, was not remotely a priority in our bilateral relations. The initiative had neither export nor import importance but rather the operating capacity of the border had peaked.  And since the beginning of my administration, I set out to foster relations with the villages in the south of Mexico as well as in both Guatemala and Belize, our dear neighbors and brothers.”

The president has sought permission from the Mexican Senate to deploy unarmed military personnel to construct the stretch of road.