The killing of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent two weeks ago in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosi by members of the Zetas drug cartel highlights the importance of Mexico's new role as leader of Ameripol, a regional police force that was formed in Colombia in 2007 to support national efforts to combat transnational criminal networks in the hemisphere.
The United States became a full member last year, and Ameripol now has 21 member states and 13 observers. Canada sits in the observer group. As a good hemispheric neighbour and, even more important, as the special partner to the United States that Canada aims to be - given the Harper government's move to a continental security perimeter as part of new border agreements with Washington - Ottawa must rise from observer to member status in Ameripol as quickly as possible.
Organized crime destabilizes social, economic, cultural and political activities and threatens commercial relations. Not only are Canadians vulnerable to the activities of transnational criminal networks operating throughout the hemisphere, but Canadian business interests in the region are directly affected by the threats and uncertainties posed by such crime. Canadian investment in Mexico and Latin America are substantial and growing. More than 2,000 Canadian companies operate in Mexico alone. Trade agreements with Chile, Costa Rica, Peru and Colombia, combined with impressive economic growth trajectories in these countries, mean that security in the Americas matters deeply to Canada, for economic as well as for social and humanitarian reasons.
The RCMP is one of the 13 observer police organizations in Ameripol, keeping company with, among others, Germany's national police force, Italy's Carabinieri, Spain's Civil Guard and Europol. As hemispheric neighbours with a rich multilateralist history, we should be embarrassed that we're not a full member of this regional organization.
The news of progress in Canada-U.S. border relations is certainly very welcome, and advances Canadian ambitions for a "special relationship" with its largest trading partner. But this economic relationship is far more important to Ottawa than to Washington. Canada derives about 25 per cent of its GDP from its exports to the United States, yet only 2.2 per cent of U.S. exports come to Canada. Meantime, if the economic growth of Mexico, a NAFTA partner with a population of more than 100 million, continues at its current rate, its economy will rival Canada's within 20 years.
The Canada-U.S. border discussions addressed important domestic concerns: security, jobs, energy and regulatory co-operation. Mexico-U.S. relations involve these same issues, but also include problems that aren't on the Canada-U.S. table: migration, gangs, violence, drugs, weapons and transnational crime. Like Canada, Mexico has a special relationship with the United States, but U.S.-Mexico relations reflect more U.S. domestic interests than U.S.-Canada relations.
U.S. political realities mean that strategic thinking about Canada-U.S. ties should always take into account U.S. domestic issues. The vulnerability of the United States to Mexican drug gangs, the stories of Canadians caught in the crossfire, and our significant investment in the region mean there are multiple reasons for us to step up our commitments to hemispheric security.
By serving as a mere observer in Ameripol, Canada not only fails to acknowledge the security risks faced by Canadian companies with significant investments in the region, but it also ignores a critically important set of U.S. domestic concerns. This is not a good strategy for furthering Canadian interests in the hemisphere, nor is it consistent with the goal of being a truly special partner with the United States.
Mexico is to be congratulated for its key role in Ameripol, and we hope that increased hemispheric police-training efforts will go some way toward helping it in its very tough struggle against the drug cartels. If the Mounties stay on the sidelines in the company of non-hemispheric observers, Canada will be remiss in its support of Mexico and the hemisphere. Membership in Ameripol would be an important accomplishment for Canada's Americas strategy.
Jennifer Jeffs is president and CEO of the Canadian International Council.