U. S. official touts coming improvements to border crossings
OTTAWA — Canadians will start feeling the benefits this year of a new Canada- U. S border deal designed to better guard against terrorism and speed up cross- border traffic, says a senior U. S. official.
The prediction was made Monday in an interview by David Heyman, assistant secretary for policy at the U. S. Department of Homeland Security.
Heyman was in Ottawa meeting with Canadian officials and others to discuss Canada- U. S. issues, notably the Beyond the Border plan announced in December by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and U. S. President Barack Obama.
The much- touted bordersecurity deal came 10 months after both leaders launched negotiations to strike an accord. The result of those talks is a plan that maps out a plan to adopt a joint “perimeter security” approach to protecting the border.
The reforms — many of them involving pilot projects that might not see full implementation for years — aim to integrate programs for Canada- U. S. security and to streamline the flow of goods between the two countries through pre- inspection and pre- clearance.
The success of the strategy will hinge on the results of the pilot projects that are rolled out over the next two years, and the plan also concedes that progress on many initiatives will depend on “the availability of funding.”
Still, he said there is no doubt Canadians will start experiencing quicker access to the U. S. this year.