Upset at the new Canadian travel requirements on its citizens, the Mexican government now wants Canadian journalists to know what it's like to go through the process of getting a visa.

Two weeks ago, the Canadian government announced it will require Mexican citizens to obtain visas before coming to Canada, a step Ottawa says is necessary to clamp down on a growing number of refugee claimants.

James Fitz-Morris

But Mexico says the visa requirement is unnecessary and will do nothing to resolve the refugee problem. It continues to lobby Ottawa to rescind the measure.

Stepping up the pressure, Mexico has just announced that Canadian journalists travelling with Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the North American Leaders' Summit in Guadalajara on August 9 and 10 will require visas to enter the country.

It is also adding a little twist: countries that already require Canadians to obtain entry-visas normally allow the prime minister's office to make all the arrangements for the travelling press. But not this time.

The group of about 20 reporters and camera people were notified that they will have to fill out the appropriate forms as well as be photographed and fingerprinted at the Mexican Embassy in Ottawa before being giving a visa.

Mexican officials are also threatening to enforce similar requirements on Canadian officials and diplomats in October if the issue isn't resolved by then.

Mexico has admitted it has little desire in forcing Canadian tourists to get visas.

That's because about 1.3-million Canadians travel there each year — injecting hundreds of millions of dollars into the Mexican economy.

— James Fitz-Morris