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Obama Heads to Summit as North America Braces for Swine Flu
2009-08-09 04:00:01.0 GMT
By Roger Runningen and Nicholas Johnston
Aug. 9 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama leaves today
for a summit with his counterparts from Mexico and Canada as all
three nations brace for a rebound of the deadly H1N1 swine flu,
which may threaten cross-border commerce.
The two-day meeting in Guadalajara among Obama, Mexican
President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen
Harper is to include talks on easing trade friction, dealing
with the recession, battling drug crime and paving the way for
climate talks later this year. A pressing topic is the return of
the pandemic flu, which emerged in Mexico earlier this year.
?Everybody recognizes that H1N1 is going to be a challenge
for all of us and there are going to be people getting sick in
the fall and die,? John Brennan, Obama?s deputy national
security adviser, said.
Officials are concerned that a widespread outbreak of the
H1N1 virus as the regular flu season gets under way in the
Northern Hemisphere?s fall may disrupt airline schedules and
slow cross-border imports and exports.
All three countries still are being battered by the
recession, and economics defines the relationship among them.
Canada and Mexico are the U.S.?s first- and third-largest
trading partners, generating more than $950 billion of imports
and exports last year. Canada and Mexico account for 28 percent
of all U.S. trade.
Common Strategy
At the North American Leaders Summit, Obama, 48, Calderon,
46, and Harper, 50, will focus on joint strategies for
coordinating medical information, stockpiling vaccines and
reviewing distribution plans to ?minimize the impact and
severity,? Brennan said at an Aug. 6 White House briefing.
For the rest of the agenda, ?the real test is whether they
can get past the photo opportunity,? said Robert Pastor, co-
director of the Center for North American Studies at American
University in Washington.
The administration is downplaying expectations.
?We don?t expect to announce anything big coming out of
this weekend,? White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said at a
briefing on Aug. 7.
One trade irritant on the table will be access to U.S.
highways for Mexican truckers. Congress in March ended a pilot
program that allowed Mexican trucks to deliver to the U.S.
everything from fresh fruit to auto parts. Lawmakers, with
pressure from unions and American firms, cited complaints that
Mexican trucks posed a safety hazard.
Retaliation
Mexico said the ban violated the North American Free Trade
Agreement and imposed $2.4 billion in retaliatory duties on U.S.
goods including cosmetics, fruit, meat and soft drinks.
About 150 companies and trade groups, including Caterpillar
Inc., Smithfield Foods Inc., PepsiCo Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores
Inc., say the tariffs are hurting sales, profit and jobs. The
group wrote to Obama on Aug. 6 demanding a resolution.
?It?s a stone in the shoe,? Arturo Sarukhan, Mexico?s
ambassador to the U.S., said in Washington. Calderon hopes for a
resolution ?by the end of the year,? he said.
Mike Froman, deputy national security adviser for
international economics and former Citigroup Inc. executive,
said the administration is ?working with Congress to address
safety concerns? in ways that are consistent with the trade
accord.
Another source of friction among the countries is a section
of the $787 billion economic stimulus program that requires the
use of American-made parts or equipment in such projects as
highways and bridges.
Protectionism
?The Buy America restrictions are one example of growing
protectionism in the U.S.? that comes during a recession, Jay
Myers, chief executive of the Canadian Manufacturers and
Exporters trade group, said in an Aug. 6 interview from Ottawa.
The provision has prevented companies like Ipex Inc., a
Toronto-based pipe manufacturer, or Hayward Gordon Ltd., a pump
and engineered-systems manufacturer in Halton Hills, Ontario,
from taking part in infrastructure projects generated by the
stimulus.
Froman said Obama would work with Canada and other trading
partners ?to see if we can mitigate the impact on trade.?
On battling drug cartels, Obama is offering political
support to Calderon who, in the face of growing criticism, has
used Army troops to patrol city streets to try and stem
violence. Almost 10,000 people have been killed in drug-related
murders in Mexico over the last 18 months.
The U.S. supports Mexico?s war on drugs through the Merida
Initiative, a three-year, $1.1 billion package of aid to Mexico
that includes helicopters, intelligence sharing, and police
training.
Accelerated Aid
Calderon will urge Obama to ?try to streamline the
pipeline? and quicken the arrival of assistance, Sarukhan said.
The Mexican government ?would like to see it accelerated,? he
said.
On climate change and energy issues, the three countries
are seeking a unified agenda that ?can lay the foundation for a
broader agreement? in such areas as low carbon-growth plans,
technology cooperation and developing trading in carbon markets,
Froman said. That will set up their approach to a United Nations
conference on climate change in December.
Obama is more popular in Mexico and Canada than President
George W. Bush, which means ?it?s going to be a lot easier for
them to cooperate on issues,? said James Blanchard, former U.S.
ambassador to Canada under Democratic President Bill Clinton
?They won?t be worried about being criticized for trying to
work with him.?
Obama Heads to Summit as North America Braces for Swine Flu
2009-08-09 04:00:01.0 GMT
By Roger Runningen and Nicholas Johnston
Aug. 9 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama leaves today
for a summit with his counterparts from Mexico and Canada as all
three nations brace for a rebound of the deadly H1N1 swine flu,
which may threaten cross-border commerce.
The two-day meeting in Guadalajara among Obama, Mexican
President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen
Harper is to include talks on easing trade friction, dealing
with the recession, battling drug crime and paving the way for
climate talks later this year. A pressing topic is the return of
the pandemic flu, which emerged in Mexico earlier this year.
?Everybody recognizes that H1N1 is going to be a challenge
for all of us and there are going to be people getting sick in
the fall and die,? John Brennan, Obama?s deputy national
security adviser, said.
Officials are concerned that a widespread outbreak of the
H1N1 virus as the regular flu season gets under way in the
Northern Hemisphere?s fall may disrupt airline schedules and
slow cross-border imports and exports.
All three countries still are being battered by the
recession, and economics defines the relationship among them.
Canada and Mexico are the U.S.?s first- and third-largest
trading partners, generating more than $950 billion of imports
and exports last year. Canada and Mexico account for 28 percent
of all U.S. trade.
Common Strategy
At the North American Leaders Summit, Obama, 48, Calderon,
46, and Harper, 50, will focus on joint strategies for
coordinating medical information, stockpiling vaccines and
reviewing distribution plans to ?minimize the impact and
severity,? Brennan said at an Aug. 6 White House briefing.
For the rest of the agenda, ?the real test is whether they
can get past the photo opportunity,? said Robert Pastor, co-
director of the Center for North American Studies at American
University in Washington.
The administration is downplaying expectations.
?We don?t expect to announce anything big coming out of
this weekend,? White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said at a
briefing on Aug. 7.
One trade irritant on the table will be access to U.S.
highways for Mexican truckers. Congress in March ended a pilot
program that allowed Mexican trucks to deliver to the U.S.
everything from fresh fruit to auto parts. Lawmakers, with
pressure from unions and American firms, cited complaints that
Mexican trucks posed a safety hazard.
Retaliation
Mexico said the ban violated the North American Free Trade
Agreement and imposed $2.4 billion in retaliatory duties on U.S.
goods including cosmetics, fruit, meat and soft drinks.
About 150 companies and trade groups, including Caterpillar
Inc., Smithfield Foods Inc., PepsiCo Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores
Inc., say the tariffs are hurting sales, profit and jobs. The
group wrote to Obama on Aug. 6 demanding a resolution.
?It?s a stone in the shoe,? Arturo Sarukhan, Mexico?s
ambassador to the U.S., said in Washington. Calderon hopes for a
resolution ?by the end of the year,? he said.
Mike Froman, deputy national security adviser for
international economics and former Citigroup Inc. executive,
said the administration is ?working with Congress to address
safety concerns? in ways that are consistent with the trade
accord.
Another source of friction among the countries is a section
of the $787 billion economic stimulus program that requires the
use of American-made parts or equipment in such projects as
highways and bridges.
Protectionism
?The Buy America restrictions are one example of growing
protectionism in the U.S.? that comes during a recession, Jay
Myers, chief executive of the Canadian Manufacturers and
Exporters trade group, said in an Aug. 6 interview from Ottawa.
The provision has prevented companies like Ipex Inc., a
Toronto-based pipe manufacturer, or Hayward Gordon Ltd., a pump
and engineered-systems manufacturer in Halton Hills, Ontario,
from taking part in infrastructure projects generated by the
stimulus.
Froman said Obama would work with Canada and other trading
partners ?to see if we can mitigate the impact on trade.?
On battling drug cartels, Obama is offering political
support to Calderon who, in the face of growing criticism, has
used Army troops to patrol city streets to try and stem
violence. Almost 10,000 people have been killed in drug-related
murders in Mexico over the last 18 months.
The U.S. supports Mexico?s war on drugs through the Merida
Initiative, a three-year, $1.1 billion package of aid to Mexico
that includes helicopters, intelligence sharing, and police
training.
Accelerated Aid
Calderon will urge Obama to ?try to streamline the
pipeline? and quicken the arrival of assistance, Sarukhan said.
The Mexican government ?would like to see it accelerated,? he
said.
On climate change and energy issues, the three countries
are seeking a unified agenda that ?can lay the foundation for a
broader agreement? in such areas as low carbon-growth plans,
technology cooperation and developing trading in carbon markets,
Froman said. That will set up their approach to a United Nations
conference on climate change in December.
Obama is more popular in Mexico and Canada than President
George W. Bush, which means ?it?s going to be a lot easier for
them to cooperate on issues,? said James Blanchard, former U.S.
ambassador to Canada under Democratic President Bill Clinton
?They won?t be worried about being criticized for trying to
work with him.?
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