Four Canadian ministers on Tuesday unveiled a border security plan they had privately presented to US president-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration, with an emphasis on surveillance, intelligence and technology.
Canadian ministers had an “encouraging” meeting with Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, Canadian Minister of Finance, Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc told reporters.
“I went through with Mr Homan the information that we’re sharing with you today... I’m encouraged by that conversation and by conversations I’ve had with the incoming [US] secretary of commerce, Howard Lutnick,” LeBlanc said.
Photo: Bloomberg
LeBlanc and his colleagues announced a plan to beef up the US-Canada border with helicopters, drones, surveillance towers and sniffer dogs, as well as a “joint strike force” to target transnational organized crime.
The embattled minority government of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said it would invest C$1.3 billion (US$908 million) toward border security over six years.
The plan focuses on fentanyl, irregular migration and organized crime.
Canada has been under pressure to beef up its border with the US since Trump threatened Canada and Mexico with sweeping 25 percent tariffs if they did not stem the movement of migrants and drugs into the US.
US authorities apprehended more than 23,000 people near the US-Canada border in the 12 months ending in October, more than double the previous 12-month period, but a tiny fraction of the 1.5 million people apprehended near the US-Mexico border during that time.
Canadian police said they have installed more cameras and sensors over the most-traversed section of the border over the past four years.
However, they acknowledge there is little they can do to stop southbound crossers.
Experts said the flurry of attention to the US-Canada border is as much about perception as reality.
A more effective mode of interdiction might be to stop people from coming to Canada in the first place, they said.
Canada is already attempting that — granting fewer visas and turning away visa-holders.
Canada also plans to amend its immigration law to allow authorities to “cancel, suspend, or vary immigration documents for reasons deemed in the public interest.”
Trudeau’s government was thrown into chaos on Monday when his finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland quit. Trudeau, trailing in polls, faces calls from within his own caucus to resign.
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