Posts Tagged ‘Beyond the Border’

June 14, 2012: Economic Statecraft Day

Thursday, June 14th, 2012

Today is Global Economic Statecraft Day. When I heard that the U.S. State Department would be celebrating this day, my first thought was “every day in Canada is Economic Statecraft Day.” Our job is to help keep the wheels of the largest trading relationship in the world rolling and Economic Statecraft is how we do that. Our team at the Embassy in Ottawa and our seven consulates throughout Canada work tirelessly to ensure that the $1.8 billion in trade that crosses our shared border every day continues to flow in both directions and that the U.S.-Canadian economic relationship thrives.

I am in Vancouver today, meeting with business leaders to learn more about the business climate in British Columbia, opportunities to enhance bilateral cooperation on trade issues, and views on regulatory and border issues including the Regulatory Cooperation Council and Beyond the Border initiatives.

So what is Economic Statecraft, not just today, but every day? Economic Statecraft is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s vision to put economics at the forefront of U.S. foreign policy. It means using smart economic foreign policy to promote the North American marketplace. It is a realization that security and prosperity are shaped in boardrooms and trading floors as well as in capital buildings and international summits. In Canada, Economic Statecraft means ensuring that our tremendous economic interdependence strengthens our relationships with each other and in the world.

In The Lexus and the Olive Tree, award-winning journalist Thomas Friedman wrote that no two countries with a McDonald’s restaurant have ever gone to war. This reflects an important point that economic interdependence breeds peace and stability. This, at its core, is Economic Statecraft and there is no better example of successful economic statecraft than in the U.S.-Canada relationship. Our trillion dollar trade and investment relationship creates close political and social connections and these political and social connections lead to even more trade. This “virtuous cycle” of friendships creating trade and trade creating friendships is exactly what Economic Statecraft is all about.

DJ

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Posted in June 2012 |

June 11, 2012: Beyond the Border Updates

Monday, June 11th, 2012

When President Obama and Prime Minister Harper announced the Beyond the Border Action Plan last December, I said that opportunities for stakeholders to participate in the process and feedback from people who deal with the border every day would be integral to implementation. We need your views, and we expect you to hold our feet to the fire. Success depends on our willingness to hear what you have to say and act on it.

Over the past few weeks, the Action Plan has taken significant steps forward.

In February, I made an announcement at Montreal’s Trudeau Airport for one of the new NEXUS lanes we’ve created at several international airports. This is one of the most tangible achievements. Making it easier for trusted travelers and frequent travelers to cross the border will help reduce wait times and let U.S. and Canadian law enforcement focus resources on transit that needs more scrutiny.

On May 14, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney announced joint consultations with stakeholders on cross-border business. These consultations will gather input and ideas to facilitate cross border business travel. Secretary Napolitano attended the first joint consultation in Washington, and Minister Kenney attended a similar consultation in Toronto. Stakeholders who couldn’t attend either meeting can send comments to the Department of Homeland Security by email until June 15 at BeyondtheBorder@hq.dhs.gov.

On May 31, the U.S. and Canada announced that we have agreed to the mutual recognition of air cargo security. Cargo on passenger aircraft will be screened at the point of origin and will not need to be rescreened at the border or prior to upload in the other country. This will facilitate commerce across the border, improve the efficiency of screening, and reduce burdens on and costs to industry.

We are moving forward. Individual steps may not be flashy, but taken together, they will make a concrete difference in how goods and people move across the border. They will facilitate trade, encourage travel and create jobs in a time when all are very much needed.

More information about the entire Action Plan can be found on the Department of Homeland Security website at www.dhs.gov/beyond-the-border.

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Posted in June 2012 |

December 20, 2011: Ottawa

Tuesday, December 20th, 2011

Monday of last week was my first day back in the office after the announcement by the President and the Prime Minister of the Action Plans for Beyond the Border and the Regulatory Cooperation Council. (I left Washington on Wednesday night and spent Thursday and Friday in Toronto with the press — which is probably worth its own blog.)

One of the things we promised in the action plans is to consult, both formally and informally, with interested stakeholders to get their input on what is in the plans and on our progress in implementing them.

We started last week. The two architects of Beyond the Border and Regulatory Cooperation on the Canadian side, Simon Kennedy and Bob Hamilton, and I had a chance to meet with about 30 members of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce at a lunch arranged by Perrin Beatty, the CEO of the Chamber.

We received a great deal of useful feedback. I also found it interesting that Simon, Bob and I all expressed the same view to the group. What we did last Wednesday was to announce plans. While we believe they are excellent roadmaps to lead us to where the Prime Minister and the President want us to go — more trade, thinner borders and a more secure North America — we will only achieve those goals if we get to work and execute. Each of us encouraged the members of the Chamber — and all other interested stakeholders in Canada and the United States — to hold us accountable for results and to hold our feet to the fire in the coming months and years.

In addition to informal events like our lunch last week, we also have more formal processes for collecting input. On the U.S. side, we published a Federal Register Notice on the process inviting interested parties to comment on the Beyond the Border Action Plan. You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-2011-0115, through the Federal eRulemaking Portal, by email (BeyondtheBorder@hq.dhs.gov), or by mail (Beyond the Border Coordinator, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Mailstop 0455, Washington, DC 20016).

The U.S.-Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council is planning to hold the first RCC Meeting, with stakeholders from both sides of the border, in late January in Washington D.C. The individual RCC working groups will also hold stakeholder meetings to seek input as they draft their work plans.

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Posted in December 2011 |

December 7, 2011: Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011

I have just come from the Oval Office, where President Obama and Prime Minister Harper took our relationship to the next level as they announced the Action Plans for Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness.

The United States and Canada have long been the best of neighbors, friends, partners, and allies. Based on foundations of mutual reliance and respect we have built prosperity at home while standing shoulder-to-shoulder defending our shared values around the world. We have long understood that if we work together we are stronger, more prosperous, and more competitive.

President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper arrive to speak in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011


Building on that spirit, in February we set forth a plan for the future of North America. We committed to a shared vision for perimeter security and economic competitiveness. We agreed to work together within, at, and away from our borders to enhance our security, better coordinate our regulatory systems, and accelerate the legitimate flow of people, goods and services. We rejected the false choice between security and efficiency at the border. We realized that by improving the efficiency of the border in smart ways we would enhance the security of North America while lifting the standard of living of our people. We promised to consult with our citizens and to deliver a detailed Action Plan to realize our vision. Today we deliver on that promise.

In 1961, President Kennedy had the opportunity to address the Canadian Parliament. He famously said: “what unites us is far greater than what divides us.” With the actions we take today between our two great countries that statement was never more true.

I invite you to read all about the action plans and what they involve here. We’ve posted all the documents and fact sheets from the United States Government and I’m writing to invite you to learn as much as you can about the plan and what it involves. I invite your comments here and welcome your suggestions and support.

DJ

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Posted in December 2011 |

September 16, 2011: Boston

Monday, September 19th, 2011

Today Ambassador Doer and I spoke at a breakfast meeting of the New England Council, where we had a chance to talk about Beyond the Border, Regulatory Cooperation, and other key issues.     

Ambassador Jacobson and Ambassador Doer at the Hampshire House above the famous "Cheers" bar

The meeting took place at the Hampshire House which, those of you who are familiar with Boston know, is the restaurant upstairs of the famous bar where the television program Cheers was set. Unfortunately, the bar wasn’t open at 7:30 am when we arrived. So – instead of a beer – we had to settle for a photo.

DJ

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Posted in September 2011 |