OTTAWA—The leaders of North America have called on the international community to “ensure full respect” for LGBTI people, as Canada and the United States pledge to step up equal rights advocacy at home and abroad.

In a joint statement at the North American Leaders Summit in Ottawa, Canada, the U.S. and Mexico promised solidarity with LGBTI communities as 2016 Pride celebrations begin across the continent.

“Appalled and saddened by the recent events in Orlando, Canada, Mexico, and the United States call on all members of the international community to ensure full respect for the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and intersex persons,” the statement, issued as the leaders’ began their meeting, read.

The push comes after the deadliest mass shooting in American history, when a gunman murdered 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando earlier this month.

It also comes as Mexican President Enrique Peno Nieto moves forward with legislation to legalize same-sex marriage across his country.

Speaking on the International Day Against Homophobia in May, Pena Nieto said he wants to amend the constitution to allow-same sex marriage nation-wide. Some jurisdictions in Mexico, including Mexico City, already have equal marriage rights.

The initiative has been opposed by Mexico’s Catholic church. Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico City spokesman Rev. Hugo Valdemar told the Associated Press in May that legislators should listen to their “conscience.”

“Marriage has some very concrete aims, which, of course, two people of the same sex do not fulfill,” Valdemar told the wire service.

The Mexican president has faced criticism on his four-day visit to Canada on his country’s human rights record. Amnesty International has urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to raise human rights issues, particularly violence against women, in bilateral talks with Pena Nieto.

A senior Canadian source said recognizing LGBTI rights was a “significant conversation” with the Mexican delegation, one that took place both formally as well as on the margins of a state dinner thrown for Pena Nieto at Rideau Hall Tuesday night.

While Mexico signed on to push the international community to support LGBTI rights, only Canada and the U.S. further pledged to flex their diplomatic muscle abroad to support the decriminalization of same-sex relationships. The Mexican delegation was not immediately available to comment.

Trudeau will become the first Canadian prime minister to march in Toronto’s Pride parade on July 3. Early in their mandate, the Liberals made a few gestures towards Canada’s LGBTQ community, including raising the Pride flag on Parliament Hill and introduced legislation to extend human rights protections for transgender Canadians.

President Barack Obama has also earned praise from rights advocates. Over the course of his presidency, Obama oversaw the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy on gays and lesbians in the military, appointed a number of LBGTQ judges, and extended hate crime laws, according to advocacy group Human Rights Campaign.

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