Mexican leader travels to China's Hangzhou for G20 Summit

MEXICO CITY - Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto travels to China on Friday to take part in the "strategic" Group of 20 (G20) Summit to be held on Sept 4-5 in the city of Hangzhou, China.

In a statement issued on Friday, Mexico's Foreign Affairs Ministry called the gathering a "strategic platform for consolidating Mexico's global role," and said the president was heading to the forum with five "main goals," many of which are the same ones China has singled out for discussion.

China has said this year's gathering of the world's 20 biggest economies will take place with the theme "Building an innovative, strengthened, interconnected and inclusive global economy."

To that end, said the ministry, "China has proposed exploring new models for growth based on innovation, the digital economy, the new industrial revolution and structural reforms."

Similarly, topping Mexico's objectives will be "to underscore the importance of structural reforms to boost productivity and growth opportunities, and tackle the challenges of the world economy."

The second goal is to "spur investment in high-quality infrastructure to improve inclusion and connectivity."

Mexico will also back "promoting financial inclusion; contributing to the reactivation of international trade and reiterating the G20's commitment to avoid protectionist measures; (and) spurring the G20's collective contribution to implementing (the UN) 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda."

Summit leaders hope to "achieve more effective and efficient global economic and financial governance through the overhaul of global financial institutions, especially the International Monetary Fund, to create a more stable, resilient, inclusive, 'green' and transparent financial system," the government said.

Mexico considers the G20 to be the "most important" international forum for decisions about global economic governance, "with the added value of including both developed and emerging economies," the ministry said.

At the summit, leaders and representatives of international organizations will take part in five work sessions, each focusing on a key theme, and adopt a final declaration of the principle agreements reached.

President Pena Nieto is traveling accompanied by his wife Angelica Rivera, and his ministers of foreign affairs and economy, among others.