Transcript Eleanor Fox, U.S. State Department, and Stéphane

US Department of State and Canadian Department
of Foreign Affairs and International Trade:
A Cooperative Partnership
Transportation
Border Working
Group
Boston,
Massachusetts
April 14, 2010
White House Spokesman Gibbs pays tribute to Canadian
Olympic hockey success
1
United States and Canada are key partners
●
Economically
- More than 60 percent of Canadian exports go to U.S.
- Canada is largest export market for the U.S. as a whole and for 35 of the 50 U.S.
states
- Transportation and infrastructure issues are key issues for U.S.-Canada trade
- Common standards important: recent harmonization of U.S. and Canadian
standards for vehicle emissions helps maintain integrated U.S.-Canadian
automobile supply chain while helping environment.
●
Politically
- United States and Canada are key partners in Afghanistan and have both
played central roles in providing short-term and long-term aid to Haiti for
reconstruction
- We cooperate in NORAD, the North American Leaders’ Summit, the
Organization of American States, G-8 and G-20 and many other organizations.
● Cross-border
U.S. and Canada cooperated particularly well on security, transportation and
travel facilitation issues during recent Vancouver Olympic Games
2
Top Officials Meet Frequently
● Secretary Clinton in Canada for G8 Ministerial March 29, for
Haiti Conference February 15; held bilaterals with PM Harper
and Minister Cannon on both occasions; Secretary Clinton and
Minister Cannon regularly in touch by phone.
● PM Harper met with President in Washington September 15,
2009; President Obama met with Prime Minister Harper in
Ottawa in January 2009 and the two have met frequently at
international summits.
3
Who Handles Canada Policy within the State Department?
Within the United States government, the State Department has
the lead on all foreign policy issues (USTR leads on trade
negotiations). Responsibilities flow from the Secretary down to
the geographical bureaus and the individual country/regional
offices.
Secretary of State
Under Secretary for Political Affairs
Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs
Office of Canadian Affairs
4
Office of Canadian Affairs – what do we do?
● Lead within State Department on bilateral issues with Canada
● Negotiate bilateral agreements
● Responsible for Presidential Permits for U.S.-Canada cross-border
transportation infrastructure
● Work cooperatively with DFAIT and other Canadian agencies to
address issues of mutual concern
● Provide guidance to senior U.S. officials on issues related to
Canada.
5
Who handles U.S. Policy within DFAIT?
Within DFAIT, U.S. Policy is handled on two tracks:
1)
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Political Relations
a. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
b. Assistant Deputy Minister of North America
c. United States Relations Division
2)
Minister of International Trade: Trade Relations
a. Deputy Minister of International Trade
b. Assistant Deputy Minister of Trade Policy & Negotiations
c. North America Trade Policy Division
 Privy Council Office also coordinates U.S. policy, most often through the
Cabinet Committee on Foreign Affairs & Security
United States Relations Division – what do we do?
•
•
•
•
Lead the Department of Foreign Affairs on U.S. transboundary
policy issues:
1) Border Issues: transportation; security; facilitation
2) Energy & Environment: water/fisheries; energy/climate
change; Arctic
3) Foreign & Domestic Policy: ongoing and emerging
policy issues
Negotiate bilateral agreements
Work cooperatively with the State Department and other U.S.
government agencies to address issues of mutual concern
Provide policy guidance on the Canada-U.S. relationship to
senior Canadian officials, both within DFAIT and other
government departments
DFAIT-State: What have we done together (lately) ?
● With contributions from Public Safety Canada and Department
of Homeland Security, negotiated Emergency Management
Agreement to better coordinate and cooperate at federal level
● Working toward new agreement on Great Lakes Water Quality
● Conducted joint fact-finding tour of rail and marine preinspection sites as prelude to possible negotiations on an
agreement to cover these modes
● Helped facilitate Olympic coordination, including U.S.
clearance of general aviation flights traveling to Canada for
Olympics
8
Other Types of Coordination
Joint:
● Through regular bilateral discussions such as Air Preclearance
Consultative Group and the Emergency Management Group
● Through larger bilateral organizations such as TBWG
US:
● Through NSC-led interagency groups and discussions on
issues involving Canada
Canadian:
● Through PCO-led Deputy Ministers Committee on Border
Management, as well as through other issue-specific working
groups and discussions at the official level
9
US Department of State and Canadian Department of
Foreign Affairs and International Trade:
A Cooperative Partnership
Contact:
Eleanore Fox
[email protected]
Stéphane Jobin
[email protected]
Prime Minister Harper and Ambassador Jacobson
settle Olympic beer bet