Mexico and the Visegrad Group: fundamentals, main directions and perspectives of a new multilateral and bilateral cooperation in the context of a new international order

<ns3:p>Mexico and the countries of the Visegrad Group (V4: the Czech Republic/Czechia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia) are geographically distant countries. However, both parties share similar characteristics and problems. Although Mexico is the second-largest trading partner of the V4 states in the Americas, following the United States (US), their cooperative relations remain rather tenuous, despite the considerable potential for expansion. This paper pursues four objectives. First, it examines the current state of cooperative relations between Mexico and the V4. Second, it investigates the problems and challenges shared by both parties. Third, it analyzes Mexico’s relations with the European Union (EU), particularly since the entry into force of the Global Agreement - formally titled the Economic Partnership, Political Coordination and Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part. Fourth, it identifies the variables that hinder the further development of cooperation between Mexico and the V4. The research hypothesis assumes that Mexico and the V4 countries are highly dependent on their geographically proximate political and economic powers, which, to some extent, constrains the deepening of Mexico-V4 relations. Moreover, these relations are primarily grounded in economic links and in cooperation based on “soft power” capacities, particularly in the scientific and academic spheres.</ns3:p>