This piece examines Mexico's foreign policy in the Caribbean within the EU-CELAC framework, aiming to comprehensively analyse Mexico's historical ties, economic interests, and regional dynamics in the Caribbean. The study explores strategic partnerships, economic ties, and security cooperation, shedding light on Mexico's potential role in the geopolitical landscape of Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, it examines Mexico's engagement with indigenous communities in the Caribbean, focusing on environmental diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, resource management, and human rights advocacy. The research also investigates the interests of France and the Netherlands in the Caribbean, emphasizing cultural cooperation, economic partnerships, environmental collaboration, and security cooperation. The research uncovers Mexico's multifaceted engagement in the Caribbean, highlighting strategic partnerships, economic interests, and security cooperation. It also reveals the significance of environmental diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, and human rights advocacy in Mexico's interactions with indigenous communities in the Caribbean. Furthermore, the study identifies potential areas for enhanced cooperation between the EU and the Caribbean within the EU-CELAC framework, emphasizing the benefits of cultural, economic, and security collaboration. The research employs a comprehensive analysis of historical and contemporary diplomatic interactions, economic engagements, and security cooperation between Mexico and the Caribbean. It utilizes a qualitative approach to examine Mexico's foreign policy strategies, historical ties, and economic interests in the Caribbean. Additionally, the study incorporates insights from cultural, economic, and security perspectives to provide a holistic understanding of Mexico's role in the Caribbean within the EU-CELAC framework. The overall conclusion is the significance of Mexico's diplomatic and economic engagements in the Caribbean, offering valuable insights into regional dynamics, strategic partnerships, and potential areas for enhanced cooperation. It also emphasizes the interests of France and the Netherlands in the Caribbean region, highlighting the importance of cultural, economic, and security cooperation. The study contributes to a better understanding of the geopolitical landscape of Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the potential for collaborative initiatives within the EU-CELAC framework. Disengagement and Tolerance are not unconditionally a good thing. It can also be an expression of carelessness.

Mexico-Caribbean-Brazil, EU & Caricom, EU-CELAC

1. ACS (2023). Strategic Plan of Action 2022–2026. Association of Caribbean States, Port of Spain.

2. ACP-EU (2021). Joint Communication on Climate Resilience in the Caribbean. Brussels: ACP-EU Partnership.

3. Amorim Neto, Octavio, and Andrés Malamud. “The Policy-Making Capacity of Foreign Ministries in Presidential Regimes: A Study of Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico, 1946–2015.” Latin American Research Review, 2018.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/latinamerican-research-review/article/policymakingcapacity-of-foreign-ministries-in-presidentialregimes-a-study-of-argentina-brazil-and-mexico19462015/BDE9ADB42451A78DEA60206244DD46 5A

4. Antonio Ortiz Mena L. N., Octavio Amorim Neto, Rafael Fernández de Castro (eds.). Brasil y México: Encuentros y Desencuentros. Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE), 2005.

5. Broecker, W. The Great Ocean Conveyor: Discovering the Trigger for Climate Change. Princeton University Press, 1991.

6. Byron, J., & Lewis, P. Formulating Sustainable Development Benchmarks for the Caribbean. Social and Economic Studies, 56(2), 1–30, 2007.

7. Church, J. A. The Gulf Stream: Encounters with the Blue God. Harvard University Press, 2016.

8. Domínguez, Jorge I., and Rafael Fernández de Castro (eds.). The United States and Mexico: Between Partnership and Conflict. Routledge, 2014.

9. European External Action Service (2021). EU-CELAC Relations: Strategic Partnership for Sustainable

Development. Brussels

10. Ferchen, M., & Nolte, D. (2023). China and Latin America in the 2020s: New Dependencies or Strategic Autonomy? German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) Working Paper No. 341.

11. Fernández de Castro, Rafael. Mexico’s Foreign Policy in the Twenty-First Century: The Challenge of Multipolarity. Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2013.

12. Gallagher, K. P., & Porzecanski, R. The Dragon in the Room: China and the Future of Latin American Industrialization. Stanford University Press, 2010.

13. Girvan, N. (2012). Reinterpreting the Caribbean. Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies, 37(2–3), 217–232.

14. Gonzales, Anthony. “The Implementation Deficit in CARICOM: An Assessment.” In Managing New Security

Threats in the Caribbean, 2022.

https://link.springer.com/chapter710.1007/978-3-03098733-6_10?

15. Guzmán, M., & de la Torre, L. (2019). EU-CELAC Cooperation: Challenges and Opportunities. Journal of Interregional Studies, 15(2), 45–62.

16. Hammet, Brian. A Concise History of Mexico, 2019.

17. Hernández, Jaime E. The Foreign Policy of Mexico: Challenges and Opportunities in a Changing World. Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.

18. Hornbeck, J.F. CRS Report for Congress – CARICOM:

Challenges and Opportunities for Caribbean Economic

Integration, 2008.

https://sice.oas.org/TPD/CAR_EU/Studies/CRSCARICO M_Challenges_e.pdf?

19. Ilcus, Christian. EU-CUBA Relations [preprint]. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4

622305

20. Ilcus, Christian. “The EU’s Strategic Partnerships: How Can Governance Be Strengthened,” Journal of Public Policy and Administration [forthcoming].

21. J.F. Llanes. El Interregionalismo: Nueva Estrategia de

Política Exterior para México, 2024.

https://archivos.juridicas.unam.mx/www/bjv/libros/15/7428/15.pdf

22. Looney, Robert. Handbook of Caribbean Economies, Routledge, 2021.

23. Marichal, Carlos. “Mexico and Regional Integration in Latin America and the Caribbean.” Latin American Research Review, 2010.

24. Myers, M., & Gallagher, K. P. (2021). Navigating the Belt and Road Initiative: Perspectives from Latin America.

Inter-American Dialogue & Boston University GDP Center.

25. National Research Council The Ocean and Climate Change: A National Strategy to Meet the Challenges of a Changing Ocean, The National Academies Press, 2010.

26. Pollack, Alexandre. “The European Union’s Support of the Implementation of the Peace Process in Colombia.” Global

Policy, Vol. 15(3). https://doi.org/10.1111/17585899.133374

27. Payne, A., & Sutton, P. (2007). Repositioning the Caribbean within Globalisation. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers.

28. Ray, R., Gallagher, K. P., Sanborn, C. A., & López, A. (2022). China–Latin America Economic Bulletin 2022 Edition. Boston University Global Development Policy Center.

29. Schell, Patricio. “Mexico’s Multilateral Diplomacy and Global Governance.” Global Governance, 2017.

30. Serbin, A. (2010). The Caribbean: Regional Integration, Hemispheric Relations and Global Insertion. In A. Serbin et al. (Eds.), Latin America and the Caribbean in the Global Context. Buenos Aires: CRIES.

31. Serbin, Andrés. Latin America in the World: Mexico’s Foreign Policy and Global Regionalism. CRIES, 2014.

32. Starling, Heloisa, & Schwarcz. Brazil – A Biography, Penguin, 2019.

33. Sullivan, Mark P. Mexico’s Foreign Relations in Transition. Congressional Research Service Report, 2018.

34. Tavis, D. Jules. A Stitch in Time Saves Caribbeanization: Meta-steering and Strategic Coordination in an Era of

Caribbean Trans-Regionalism, 2016.

https://www.academia.edu/23160337/A_Stich_in_Ti me_Saves_Carribeanization_Meta_sterring-andStrategic_Coordiantion_in_an_Era_Caribbean_TransRegionalism?

35. UN ECLAC (2020). Financing for Development in the Era of COVID-19 and Beyond: Caribbean Perspectives. Santiago: United Nations.

36. Vargas-Hernández, J. G. (2020). EU-Latin America and Caribbean Relations: Policies and Challenges. European Review of International Studies, 7(1), 102–119.

37. Wise, C. Dragonomics: How Latin America Is Maximizing (or Missing Out on) China’s International Development Strategy. Yale University Press, 2020.

38. Yu, Liu. “China’s Strategic Partnership with Latin America: A Fulcrum in China’s Rise.” International Affairs, vol. 91(5), 2015.

Internet sources

1. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/latin-america-andcaribbean_en

2. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/mexico/european-unionand-mexico_en?s=248

3. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/cuba/european-union-andcuba_en?s=136

4. https://caricom.org/

5. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/gena/108471.pdf

0050062023/original/WDR2023-Caribbean-

6. https://embamex.sre.gob.mx/filipinas/index.php/negoci Background-Paper-FORMATTED.pdf os-y-comercio/overviewmexicaneconomy https://epthinktank.eu/2018/09/18/eu-trade-with-latin-

7. https://www.mexicancaribbean.travel/destinations.htm america-and-the-caribbean-overview-and-figures/

l

8. https://read.dukeupress.edu/hahr/article/75/2/318/1

45228/The-Challenge-of-Integration-Europe-and-the

9. https://repositorio.cepal.org/server/api/core/bitstream s/6d6ac875-3ab0-4de7-b534-4c07f466ef15/content

10. https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-traderelationships-country-and-region/countries-andregions/caribbean_en

11. https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/03312

2_Ellis_Testimony1.pdf

12. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/node/412672_fr?s=213

13. https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/11/16/h ow-latin-america-can-use-trade-to-boost-growth

14. https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2024/03/me xico-in-the-emerging-worldorder?lang=en&center=global

15. https://www.iadb.org/en/news/decline-exports-latinamerica-and-caribbean-softens

16. https://www.csis.org/analysis/reimagining-us-strategycaribbean

17. https://www.gov.br/planalto/en/latestnews/2024/02/in-guyana-lula-highlights-opportunitiesfor-integration-between-brazil-and-caribbean-countries

18. https://repositorio.cepal.org/server/api/core/bitstream s/aed1dd30-a05d-4864-801c-22443cd2e480/content

19. https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/03%2

031%2022%20China%27s%20Role%20in%20Latin%2

0America%20and%20the%20Caribbean.pdf

20. https://www.pewresearch.org/2022/01/20/thecaribbean-is-the-largest-origin-source-of-blackimmigrants-but-fastest-growth-is-among-africanimmigrants/

21. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/caribbeanimmigrants-united-states-2014

22. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/caribbeanimmigrants-united-states-2014

23. https://www.inmotionaame.org/print.cfm@migration=1

0.html

24. https://kmhub.iom.int/sites/default/files/2022-

02/working_papers_en_baja_20.06.17.pdf

25. https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/3c5cf49b10dd0 607472f4a2fb8a063ce-

26. IV CELAC-EU Summit 2025 | EU-LAC Foundation

27. European External Action Service: “EU and Latin America and the Caribbean: partners of choice for a changing world”

https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/eu-and-latin-america-and-caribbean-partners-choice-changing-world_en

28. European Parliamentary Research Service: “EU–CELAC relations ahead of the 2025 summit”

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2025/772884/EPRS_BRI%282025%29772884_EN.pdf

29. Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI): “A Critical Juncture: EU’s Venezuela Policy Following the War in Ukraine”

https://www.iai.it/en/pubblicazioni/c25/critical-juncture-eus-venezuela-policy-following-war-ukraine

30. Peoples Dispatch: “Cuba and Venezuela condemn EU’s unilateralism ahead of CELAC EU summit”

https://peoplesdispatch.org/2023/07/13/cuba-and-venezuela-condemn-eus-unilateralism-ahead-of-celac-eu-summit/

31. Council of the European Union: “Venezuela” (EU policy page)

https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/venezuela/

32. EU LAC Foundation: “IV CELAC EU Summit 2025 (Santa Marta, 7 10 November 2025)”

https://eulacfoundation.org/en/iv-celac-eu-summit-2025