US starting to work collaboratively on the border, instead of alone: Experts By Anca Gurzu Published July 21, 2010

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Last week, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews and United States Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced a plan to establish a first-ever cross-border approach to critical infrastructure. It would see the two nations sharing information and managing risks in an effort to better prepare and respond to natural disasters. The two countries also announced the possibility of sharing information to combat money-laundering and terrorist financing.

"Our mutual security extends beyond our borders and we must work together to mitigate threats before they reach either Canada or the US while facilitating the legitimate mobility of people and goods between us," Mr. Toews said in a news release.

"The security of the United States and Canada is uniquely linked by proximity and a long history of close collaboration between our two governments," followed Mrs. Napolitano.

But the history of close collaboration has not been that long, experts say. In the aftermath of 9/11, Canada has been mostly reacting to unilaterally-proposed security measures by the US, as opposed to truly working together, they say.

It is the language of this latest announcement and the last few months, however, that make experts optimistic about the move towards true collaboration.

Primarily unilateral

In December 2001, Canadian and Americans officials signed a 30-point action plan whose purpose was to increase security while at the same time ensuring the easy flow of people and goods across the border.

Since then, several measures have been implemented. Canada passed its first ever anti-terrorism law, Canadians now need a passport at land-border crossings, passengers are screened and pre-cleared before US-bound planes take off, and the number of personnel at the border has been visibly increased.

"I do believe that immediately after 9/11 and soon afterwards there was a unilateral effort in terms of how much [border] tightening was going on, with the US on guard," said David Davidson, associate director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University.

"Canada was doing it's best to try to respond to an American government that seemed very much focused on putting forth new security measures to the greatest extent possible," agreed Philippe Lagassé, professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa.

"For a number of years it seems security was ramping up and the trade flow was worsening. It seemed the US was not interested to achieve both," he added, describing co-operation only as an afterthought for the Americans.

Canada's efforts were mostly politically driven, Mr. Davidson said.

"Canada found itself needing to bolster its security credentials to the US, needing to show that it was willing to be a secure partner," he said.

More recently, controversy has been mounting over Bill C-42, which Transport Minister John Baird quietly introduced in the House of Commons in June and which critics say threatens Canada's sovereignty.

The proposed legislation would amend Canada's Aeronautics Act to allow airlines to share passenger information with a "foreign state" for flights that pass over that country's territory without landing.

In other words, Americans would have the final say over passengers bound from Canada to Cuba, for example.

The bill comes in response to similar measures introduced by the US Homeland Security on US airlines. The department intends to implement the measures internationally by the end of the year.

"It was reactive, but in this case there was no other choice," Mr. Lagassé said. "With airspace there is very little you can do about it. If you want to fly over US airspace, you have to live with the fact that you have to harmonize with their policies, because you are technically in their space."

Former diplomat Colin Robertson, now a senior research fellow at the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute, echoed that thought.

"Countries move unilaterally," he said. "We pass legislation in the interests of Canadians, the Americans pass legislation in the interests of Americans, but it does impinge sometimes on other countries."

It is not surprising Canada is in response mode sometimes, since it is the US that was attacked and it is now taking measures to protect its homeland, Mr. Robertson said.

New game

But Mr. Toews's and Mrs. Napolitano's recent announcement signals a change in tone and focus, Mr. Lagassé said.

"It seems to have more effort not so much on building more security at the border, but actually refining what's there and make it operate more co-operatively," he said.

The reason behind the change, Mr. Lagassé said, is that the Americans have now realized they can only increase security so much without significantly impacting trade.

"It's all well and good to talk about security, security, security and to beef up the border as much as you can, but when your main trading partner is also one of the main countries that is doing fairly well in this recession," he said, "you can't help but feel that maybe they are taking notice of that and realizing that as opposed to erecting more stringent security measures, some measures should be put in place to ensure simpler trade flows."

Mr. Davidson said he has also noticed a change in discourse on the US side in the last few months. Officials from the Department of Homeland Security and from the Canada Border Service Agency have been giving joint presentations and "pretty much saying the same things," he said, interpreting this as a move to work collegially with Canada.

He also pointed to a security review report released by DHS in February, A Strategic Framework for a Secure Homeland, which also signals a change in language.

The report mentions the "twin goals" of securing the border, but also ensuring "we can securely expedite the cross-border flow of lawful immigration, travel and commerce at our borders."

"We must and can achieve both greater security and greater interchange in the world," the report reads.

"We will strengthen our defences, but we will not succumb to a siege mentality that sacrifices the open society and liberties and values that we cherish as Americans," President Barack Obama is quoted as saying in the report, "because great and proud nations don't hunker down and hide behind walls of suspicion and mistrust."

The report recognizes that the US's economic vitality relies on trade with NAFTA partners, Mr. Davidson said.

"Ensuring that trade moves smoothly is now viewed as an aspect of national security," he said.

Mr. Robertson said he has also noticed an improvement with the recent announcement of infrastructure information sharing, but said there's always been an element of collaboration between Canada and the US after 9/11.

"Even though the closed things down, there was a recognition certainly in the Bush administration and now in the Obama administration that we have to make sure we balance our security requirement with our largest security requirement, which includes economic prosperity," he said.

agurzu@embassymag.ca