ABSTRACT
The United States (US) and Mexico are in the midst of a major realignment of their relationship. This shift is the result of both the growing strategic importance of Mexico to the US and the spiralling complexity of their bilateral ties. While Mexico has never experienced sustained high-level attention from the US policymaking apparatus, the trajectory of US-Mexican relations was particularly erratic during the 1980s. The bilateral relationship is both stronger and more precarious than ever. On the one hand, there is a genuine rapport between the US government and the new Mexican administration. Though Mexico is widely viewed within the US government and the international financial community as a “model debtor” and one of the countries most deserving of immediate debt relief, the result of the 1989 negotiation fell far short of the debt reduction sought by the Mexican government.
