North American Union scheme proceeding on schedule

From the Canadian government's Industry Canada site comes the September 7 progress report "Ministers Report to Leaders on Security and Prosperity Partnership Initiatives" (tinyurl.com/gavv3):

The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the Honourable Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety, and the Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry, together with their counterparts from the United States and Mexico, today released the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) Report to the three North American leaders. The report outlines progress of collaborative initiatives between Canada, the United States and Mexico in such vital areas as security, the economy, transportation, the environment, and public health.

"This report to Prime Minister Harper, President Bush, and President Fox marks the significant progress that our three countries have made under the SPP to build on our important North American partnership," said Minister MacKay. "It's a tribute to the positive, collaborative relationships that our government has developed with Mexico and the United States, and to our common commitment to work together to build a safer, more secure and economically dynamic North America."

"Thanks to our crucial work Canadians and North Americans will be protected from security threats by smart and secure borders that promote the movement of low-risk trade and travellers within North America," said Minister Day. "For example, under the Security and Prosperity Partnership, officials are developing security standards for travel documents which will be used for cross-border travel under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI)."

It goes on, including this bit of familiar language:

To provide a uniform agreement between local offices of the Governments of the United States and Mexico, officials from both countries signed on June 27 an agreement to implement a pilot program in El Paso and Chicago, for the safe, humane, and orderly repatriation of Mexican nationals.

UPDATE: The White House, via Condi Rice, Michael Chertoff, and Carlos Gutierrez (Commerce) has received notice of the progress being made: whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/09/20060907-9.html

NAU · Fri, 09/08/2006 - 04:25 · · Importance: 4