The three amigos meet in Mexico

Talks continued today in Guadalajara, Mexico in what has been dubbed the summit of the three amigos. The leaders of the United States, Canada and Mexico are meeting to discuss economic issues, the drug trade and border security.

US President Obama arrived on Sunday. Today Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper arrived to join the talks with Mexico’s Felipe Calderon.

All three countries are partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement, the largest free-trade zone in the world. At the top of the agenda is how to power their economies through the lingering downturn and keep trade flowing smoothly.

The meeting has also attracted protesters. Around 200 of them marched on Guadalajara’s cathedral on Sunday. They had several grievances including the dominance of the US and Canada in the free trade zone to the detriment of Mexico’s farmers, human rights violations and the rights of illegal migrant workers in the US.

There is also a dispute between the US and Mexico over border bans on Mexican trucks – the United States will not allow them to drive in
the United States because they are unsafe.

With that in mind – the expected second wave of swine flu could impact on commerce and travel between the three – something which their respective governments want to minimise.

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tags: Canada, Mexico, USA