Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson left Dallas for Mexico City and Monterrey to “restore and promote ties” that the pandemic had interrupted.
Johnson’s visit to Mexico is his first international trip since he became mayor, according to NBC 5 News.
According to city officials, the trip was proposed when Johnson hosted Roberto Velasco Álvarez, chief officer for the North America Unit at the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in 2021 at Dallas City Hall. Also present at the meeting was Francisco de la Torre, consul general of Mexico in Dallas.
De la Torre invited Johnson to visit Mexico and helped plan the itinerary.
Johnson confirmed the news in a statement while also outlining the importance of Dallas standing up on the world stage.
“As an international city that drives the nation’s fourth-largest metropolitan area, it is important for us to stand up on the world stage,” Mayor Johnson said in the statement. “This trip comes at the right time. After enduring two difficult years of the pandemic, Dallas is back — and we want the world to know it. I am thrilled for the opportunity to visit the great cities of Mexico City and Monterrey. And I am confident that our time in both cities will help our city build new relationships and strengthen long-standing ties.”
De la Torre, who will accompany Mayor Johnson on the trip, said he is thrilled that the mayor’s first official international trip “is to Mexico visiting Mexico City and Monterrey,” both of whom are Dallas’ trade partners.
“This trip is especially important because of the Sister City relationship between Monterrey and Dallas,” de la Torre said.
Mayor Johnson will conclude his trip and return to Texas on March 31.