President Bush Meets with President Fox and Prime Minister Harper

In Cancun, Mexico, President Bush met with both President Vicente Fox of Mexico and Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada. The leaders discussed the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP), begun in March 2005 to strengthen North American security and competitiveness in the global economy.

PRESIDENT FOX: (Spoken in Spanish.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: Mr. President, thank you very much for your hospitality. This is a good start to a very important series of discussions. It is an honor to be here with the Prime Minister of Canada, as well. We've got vital relations that will matter to the future of our people. And I look forward to the discussions.

And I want to thank you for letting us begin our very important meetings at this very significant historical site. And I congratulate our guide, and I want to thank those who have worked hard to make sure this important part of history is accessible and is available for people to understand the past, so we can better understand the future.

So Mr. President, thank you for having us.

PRIME MINISTER HARPER: (Spoken in French.) And I can repeat the same thing quickly, if you don't mind. Forgive us, that's how we speak Spanish in the north. (Laughter.) Wonderful to be here. Thank you for the welcome, President Fox. I think we stand here in a historic site, a symbol here of our determination to build a new future for all inhabitants of North America. And I am honored to be with President Bush and President Fox, and look forward to our discussions.