Fox - Mexican migrants pose no terror threat to United States

MEXICO CITY, Mexico -- Mexican President Vicente Fox, insisting that Mexicans in the United States pose no terror threat, called Tuesday for high-level discussions to give legal status to at least some of the more than 4 million undocumented Mexicans living north of the border.

President Bush, in a videotaped message to a cabinet-level meeting of the two countries, agreed that work on migration should continue but did not suggest that an agreement was high on his agenda.

Fox told the meeting it was important to establish a migration framework that "clearly distinguishes between those who arrive in that country to work and those who could represent a threat."

While the Bush administration has refrained from saying Mexicans represent a terrorist threat, the security measures it has adopted generally have not made distinctions between nationalities.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, who is heading the U.S. delegation here, suggested a quick and partial immigration package that apparently wouldn't involve amnesty for undocumented migrants -- but could expand current guest-worker programs.

"We want to come up with an agenda of items that we can pursue over the next six months to a year," Powell said at a Mexico City news conference. The talks would start with the least controversial issues, perhaps including temporary work visas.

"We want Mexicans to travel to the United States," he said. "We want them to come back to their homes to share whatever wealth they have gained by their efforts."

Powell said giving legal status to undocumented immigrants "is a problem that will also have to be dealt with in due course, but these things will take time. These are not simple issues."

Mexican Foreign Secretary Jorge Castaneda, appearing with Powell, appealed to the United States for "concrete, specific, punctual agreements on very concrete topics that we can move on now."