(The Journal of Commerce) United States Customs agents stationed in Canada for the first time will clear U.S.-bound shipments as part of new anti-terror initiatives agreed to between the two countries.
Canada also will send
cargo inspectors to foreign ports to help screen North American cargo under Washington's Container Security Initiative, in moves announced Thursday by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and Anne McLellan, deputy
prime minister of Canada.
The countries will phase in increased security with pre-screening of trucks and drivers by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Peace Bridge connecting Fort Erie, Ont., and
Buffalo, N.Y. The next phase calls for U.S. inspectors to actually clear shipments through to the U.S. side.
Ridge and McLellan said they would "work towards" a pilot project at the Peace Bridge, which
would later be expanded to other border crossings, said Alex Swann, spokesman for McLellan.
Pre-clearance has long been talked about as a means to speed the flow of commercial traffic from Canada -- the U.S.'s
largest trading partner - but has been hindered by political and legal considerations. For example, U.S. Customs agents, like their cross-border counterparts, will not be permitted to carry guns in Canada.
U.S.
Customs currently pre-clears travelers at Canada's airports, but a compromise leaves Canadian law enforcement to detain or arrest suspicious individuals, who are prosecuted under Canadian law.
"Sovereignty
issues will have to be sorted out, but we've done it with air pre-clearance and we're ready to look at it with respect to land clearance," Swann said.
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