- 3 hours ago
Mexico's Ambassador to Iran speaks with the Tehran Times on culture, diplomacy, and the ties between two ancient nations
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00:00Good afternoon, Your Excellency. Thank you so much for granting us this interview today.
00:05So for our first question, I think we should first speak about this beautiful exhibition around us.
00:11The name of this exhibition, of course, is 68 Voices, 68 Hearts.
00:17So for people that are not familiar with the demographics of Mexico,
00:22could you please tell us what this specific number signifies?
00:25Yes, of course. Well, first of all, thank you for your interest.
00:30Thank you for coming to the Mexican Embassy and thank you for following up and promoting,
00:37informing what we are trying to showcase at the Mexican Embassy with this particular exhibition.
00:43I think the title in Spanish makes more sense than when you translate it into English,
00:48because it is referred to the number of the pieces that we are exhibiting.
00:52Because beyond those numbers, this particular number, there is a wide diversity, bigger and wider than this number,
01:03in terms of cultural diversity and, of course, linguistic diversity in Mexico.
01:09It is reflecting, of course, the enthusiasm of the artist and director that has assembled the exhibition all together,
01:18trying to reflect, trying to have a piece of all the different idiomatic and ethnic cultural expressions of the contemporary
01:27Mexico,
01:27but attached to our very long ancient past and traditions.
01:33Just to give you an example, we are talking about 360 different linguistic expressions in Mexico.
01:43Oh, so when you were moving around and, like, before this interview you were showing me the pictures,
01:50you did mention something when you were showing me the outfits that this is kind of similar to how you
01:55guys live and are in Iran.
01:58Yes, yes.
02:00So, based on that, what do you think are, of course, both Mexico and Iran are very diverse,
02:05but based on that fact, this diversity, what do you think are the same,
02:10what do you think are the traits that both countries share, especially their people?
02:15Well, I think it's difficult to number them all by name and specifically speaking, because, again, it's diversity.
02:26It's wide and it's rooted in ancient expressions and ancient traditions.
02:32But beyond that general fact, I do believe that Iranian people, particularly Iranian people,
02:38will be able to understand what I refer to, because the diversity, the ethnicity,
02:44it is very much attached to the geography of our countries.
02:48If you go to the north, if you go to the south, to the west, and to the east of
02:52the country,
02:53you will find these particular diverse different expressions that come to add to the plurality of our cultures.
03:03I don't know if I make myself clear with that, but I can go into specifics if you need me
03:08to elaborate more.
03:09Yeah, that would be great.
03:09Okay. Well, for example, I don't know the numbers in Iran, but in the case of Mexico,
03:16we are one of the richest nations in terms of cultural diversity, which means different ethnic groups,
03:23which means different languages that they have come to enrich the national Mexican culture as a whole.
03:31The national culture is integrated, if I can say so, by all these different expressions,
03:39sometimes local, sometimes in a wider sense more, let's say provincial, in terms of a geographical extension.
03:49Nevertheless, they have a continuum in the diversity, which creates and gives sense to Mexico as a country, as a
03:58society, and of course, as a culture.
04:01So, of course, this exhibition, I think, is a very good source that can connect the Iranian and the Mexican
04:09people.
04:10But besides this exhibition, I want to ask about the activities that the Mexican embassy and the Mexican government has
04:18had in Iran in recent years.
04:20What other people-to-people activities have we had that would, in recent years, that would deepen the ties between
04:27the people of Iran and the people of Mexico?
04:29Of course. Well, I forgot to mention something very important attached to your previous question, and I would like just
04:39to add it.
04:40For example, you will see in this exhibition the colors, the diverse colors expression attached to the particular artistic expressions.
04:51I think you find this in Iran as well. Iran is, for many reasons, colors.
04:55Yeah.
04:56And that makes a big difference when you go to and you make this exercise of comparing to other kinds
05:03of cultural expressions worldwide without even mentioning one in particular.
05:08So, this brings me to your current question.
05:12We have organized a number of activities in which we have been able to reflect these similarities.
05:18Just to give you an example.
05:19We organized some years ago here at the embassy, and we continue to organize kind of workshops devoted to popular
05:30expressions of the Iranian and the Mexican cultures.
05:33So, it was very important because at one point in these workshops, we decided to work with an Iranian master
05:42who she has devoted her life to promote the popular expressions of Iran reflected in this particular case in dolls.
05:52Dolls that they can be ornaments, but dolls that they can be used for kids to play as well.
05:57So, we have something very similar in Mexico.
06:00So, in this particular workshop that I was referring to, this Iranian teacher, master, she decided to create Mexican dolls
06:10with Iranian techniques.
06:12So, it was a very nice mixture.
06:14And the other particularity of this workshop is that they were developing, creating Frida Kahlo dolls.
06:23And this Frida Kahlo dolls, which is a Mexican doll, a Mexican artist done with Iranian techniques, everything related to
06:33popular cultures.
06:34We showcased in some years ago in Niavaran cultural complex, a beautiful exhibition of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera.
06:47That, for the first time, it was showcased over there, and it was integrated by three chapters.
06:53The first chapter I already explained.
06:54The second chapter, it was a photographic exhibition that it was sent to us by the Mexican cultural institutions.
07:04And the third part of that very beautiful exhibition was that we invited Iranian artists to depict their own interpretation
07:12of Frida Kahlo.
07:13So, we received so many paintings that we decided to work with an Iranian cultural association to choose the best.
07:24So, it was totally self-organized.
07:28We didn't even interfere.
07:29They make a selection.
07:31This jury, this association of cultural Iranian artists and painters, they chose 90 or so different paintings.
07:39And this was the third chapter that we showcased and we showed in this exhibition for two weeks in Niavaran.
07:46So, it was very successful, not only because it received like 10,000 visitors in two weeks, but as well
07:53because this particular workshop that I was talking about at the beginning,
07:57it was a live workshop in the exhibition, and many kids and many people, they came to the place in
08:05which we were developing the workshop,
08:09attached to Frida Kahlo, and they have not only fun, but you cannot imagine how skillful and how important things
08:16they created in these two weeks,
08:18with the help of the Iranian teachers, with the Iranian techniques, but always thinking on these Mexican dolls attached to
08:25the very important expression of popular cultures in Mexico.
08:31So, this is one example, I have more.
08:35It appears to me that you believe that art plays a very important role in building bridges between the people
08:43of Iran and Mexico, am I correct?
08:45You are correct, because I personally believe, not because I have discovered something special, but I personally believe that this
08:53kind of dialogue is the best way to build bridges and to bring people closer together.
08:58Because when we started with these ideas of, for example, the workshop or the exhibition of Frida Kahlo and Diego
09:06Rivera and Yavaran, and many other things that we have done,
09:09for instance, in the Tehran International Book Fair, or a book that we publish as part of workshops here at
09:17the Embassy,
09:18is because we do believe that if we put in touch the Iranian people, particularly Iranian cultural promoters, Iranian artists
09:27with their counterparts in Mexico,
09:29I am sure that in the future we are going to see a lot of the results of this kind
09:33of, let's say, social intercultural dialogue.
09:37So, if the Mexican Embassy can contribute to that, and especially thinking that in the future these young generations of
09:46Iranian and Mexican artists are going to continue to cooperate and talk together,
09:50we are going to see very interesting things in the future for the strengthening of a bilateral relationship, but as
09:57well to better know each other beyond stereotypes,
10:00and stereotypes are speaking very negative all the time, in a better way, not only to develop a better bilateral
10:11relationship,
10:11but as well to understand much better the complexities of our societies, full of history, full of cultural, plural diversity,
10:21no?
10:21Okay, so if we were to put this exhibition and the people-to-people ties aside, I do want to
10:28speak about the ties between
10:30the government or the state of Iran and the state of Mexico. Of course, like our people that have been,
10:36I think, in contact for several decades,
10:39even though we have a long geographic distance, diplomatic ties between Iran and Mexico are also very old,
10:46but it appears that because of everything that has been happening, the U.S. sanctions, the pressure, and like two
10:53rounds of relentless war,
10:56it appears that maybe ties between Iran and Mexico have not seen their full potential.
11:01So I wanted to ask how you see the current extent of ties between Iran and Mexico when it comes
11:07to politics,
11:08when it comes to trade and all these other aspects of bilateral relations?
11:12Of course. Well, we have had traditionally a friendly relationship. As you already mentioned, it's a historical relationship.
11:22We can trace the roots of these diplomatic ties at the end of the 19th century in our calendar.
11:29I don't know if the Persian calendar was the exact date for that. And since then, we have been having
11:34a very friendly relationship.
11:36It has has, of course, as all relationships upside downs. But we are hoping, I am hoping as a Mexican
11:42ambassador,
11:43to continue to work in strengthening that kind of dialogue. You might go and see in the, let's say, historical
11:53background of the bilateral relationship,
11:56that we have hold many important and relevant ties. Let's hope that the situation that you refer to in terms
12:06of politics and the conflict in the region,
12:12will come to an end so we can retake that ideas and continue to strengthen our bilateral relationship.
12:23Mexico is a friendly country. Our foreign policy is based on principles that they are entitled in our constitution.
12:31And we try to attach ourselves in terms of foreign policy always to this principle, foreign policy that we have.
12:39And we have that mandate not only by our constitution, but as well our president, that she's the head of
12:46the state and the head of the government.
12:47And in that regard, orienting and directing the foreign, Mexican foreign policy.
12:55So if you were to, like, give a three-year plan, what you would like to see happen in terms
13:03of bilateral ties between Iran and Mexico in the next three years, what would that be?
13:08Yeah, of course. Well, I hope that in the future we will have a stronger relationship.
13:14I think that our societies and our different communities, for different reasons, they can be closer together, as I was
13:21referring at the beginning of our interview in terms of cultural ties.
13:25And I think only together we can work in a better relationship in the future.
13:34So let's talk about something that happened not long ago, and that was Mexico's hosting of Iran's national team during
13:41the World Cup.
13:42Of course, Iran had like a special, it had special circumstances because of what was happening here.
13:50We had, there was a war going on between Iran and the US and Iranians could not camp there.
13:56So eventually Mexico became the country that hosted the Iranian, the Iranian national team.
14:03And many of these team members, many of these players actually came out later and they spoke very fondly of
14:10both the Mexican government and the Mexican people.
14:13So I want to know what it has been like for Mexico in particular, hosting this football group, football team
14:22that was under like special circumstances compared to other teams in the World Cup.
14:28Of course. Well, thank you for bringing that to our attention, because I think this is a very good example
14:34of the things that I was trying to talk about before.
14:38Although it's attached to sports, although it's a very small recent example, if you want to put it that way,
14:44I think it summarizes all the things that I was saying before,
14:48in terms of bringing our societies closest together, the admiration that in Mexico is present in terms of Iranian history
14:57and culture and the other way around.
15:00After that, everywhere I go to Iran, and that the people get to know that I am the Mexican ambassador,
15:07they come spontaneously to me to thank me for Mexico hosting the Iranian national team at the World Cup.
15:16So this is a very good example of the things that I was talking about. Going to the specifics of
15:22your question, well, as you know, Mexico was co-hosting the World Cup, along with the US and Canada.
15:28We have the honor to host, among other things, the inaugural match, which, by the way, is a very interesting
15:34anecdote metaphor of the history in terms of football, because in 2010, when the World Cup was hosted by South
15:44Africa, the inaugural match was Mexico against South Africa.
15:47And 14 years after that, that Mexico was co-hosting the World Cup. And particularly hosting the inaugural match, it
15:55was again Mexico-South Africa. So we have the chance to reciprocate that, let's say, kindness of our South African
16:03friends.
16:04In terms of Iran, as you well known, as your audience well know, Iran was in many ways having a
16:14special situation. So they come to us, they ask us if we can host Iran, that they were going to
16:23play in the US their first round matches.
16:27The Mexican president said, no problem, yes, we can do that. You have to speak to the organizers, which we
16:36know is FIFA. So everything comes in a very positive way together for us to host the Iranian football team
16:42in Tijuana.
16:44Originally, Mexico was going to be hosting the Cup only in three cities, Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.
16:53But then with this particular situation, we were having a fourth city hosting the World Cup. And as you know,
17:01and as we saw, it was only a very successful thing because the Iranians, they were feeling at home.
17:06The people, the Mexican people in Tijuana, and in that state in Baja California, they were not happy, they were
17:14very happy to see the Iranian team. And it just happened the way I said before, people together talking to
17:21each other.
17:22It was a fantastic occasion. And we are very happy that we put our grain of salt for a successful
17:31Iranian participation at the World Cup.
17:34So you mentioned that when you go somewhere and people, random people find out that you're the Mexican ambassador, they
17:41actually thank you for, they do talk about the fact that Mexico hosted Iran's football team and they thank you
17:48for that.
17:48But if we were to talk more about your relations and like your interactions and contact with the Iranian people,
17:55I wouldn't know what your experience has been like, because you have been here for a few years now.
18:01And I think maybe you have a different perspective now about the Iranian people and the Iranian culture and the
18:06Iranian community now that you've stayed here for some time.
18:10Well, in terms of what I have seen all these years that I have been serving as Mexican ambassador here
18:17is that the first day that I received the first courtesy kindness of an Iranian person has been all the
18:25time until today.
18:26I think if something characterizes Iranian people is that they are always warm, welcoming, they are kind.
18:37The only thing is that before coming to Iran, I didn't know the sense and the meaning of tarot.
18:42Now I understand it better. I know what it means. And it only makes justice to the profile and the
18:49attitude of Iranian people towards foreigners.
18:52I don't know if it's the experience of all foreigners, but at least with the Mexican people in Iran, the
18:58only thing I have received in all these years serving as Mexican ambassador is precisely that kind of kindness.
19:05So I think that this is something very rooted in your history and in your culture.
19:13It's not new and it's not only because you are just welcoming foreigners every day or every time at certain
19:22points.
19:23I think it comes, as I know now, from your old history and your old culture.
19:29And it is reflected today present in the way you treat people. And I am very grateful for that.
19:34And this is the main thing that I always experience in the streets, not only for hosting the Iranian team,
19:42but only because they get to know that I am a visitor in your country.
19:46Yeah. So for our last question, if you could say one sentence to the Iranian people, I wonder what would
19:53that be?
19:55In one sentence, oh, well, it's complicated, but I would encourage Iranian people to be the way they are, to
20:01continue their efforts, not only to treat well visitors, but as well to continue to showcase to the world, in
20:09this case to Mexico, how kind, how warm people you are.
20:13And of course, how important you have been in world history and in terms of a universal culture.
20:21Okay. Thank you so much for providing us with this opportunity.
20:24Thank you very much. I hope you find it interesting and useful for your readers.
20:29Yeah, it was amazing. Thank you.
20:30Thank you very much again.
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