March 10, 1998 No. 50

CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES STRENGTHEN

CROSS-BORDER PARTNERSHIP

Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy and U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright today announced a number of joint initiatives with the U.S. designed to strengthen the way Canada and the U.S. co-operate on issues directly affecting the citizens of both countries. The announcements were made during the Secretary of State's first official visit to Canada.

"Last April, Prime Minister Chrétien and President Clinton tasked our two governments with reinvigorating bilateral relations, especially with respect to what we do across the border," Minister Axworthy said. "We have a relationship that is already a model for the world, but it requires constant care, imagination and commitment to find ways to make it work even better. Secretary Albright and I have agreed on a number of forward-looking proposals that will help ensure that our relationship remains the envy of the world."

Minister Axworthy and Secretary Albright welcomed the recommendations of the report by the International Joint Commission (IJC), The IJC and the 21st Century, which redefines how the Commission might help Canada and the U.S. in managing the environmental relationship for the future. Specifically, they accepted in principle the recommendation to establish new binational watershed boards that would adopt an integrative ecosystem approach to the full range of water-related issues in the transboundary environment. They requested that the IJC, in consultation with the governments, identify a location for the first such board. The IJC is a binational, independent organization established under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909.

They welcomed the IJC Interim Report on the Red River Flood, which recommends ways to strengthen the mutual capacity for dealing with future crises in the Red River basin. They tasked the IJC to develop a framework for a flood emergency agreement

for the Red River basin, and to define the way in which the proposed Red River basin-wide flood forecasting committee would operate.

They further agreed to conduct a review of "lessons learned" from the Red River flood, the ice storm and other natural disasters to better prepare for future disasters on both sides of the border. This review is to be conducted under the Agreement governing co-operation between Emergency Preparedness Canada (EPC) and the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

"I was very pleased with the level of co-operation shown by U.S. agencies, especially by the U.S. Department of Defence and FEMA, during the last two natural disasters. In undertaking a review, both our governments want to benefit from these experiences and further improve our response mechanisms for future emergencies," said the Honourable Art Eggleton, Minister of National Defence and Minister responsible for Emergency Preparedness Canada.

Secretary Albright and Minister Axworthy also announced an increase of US$150,000 in annual funding by both governments to US$350,000.00, beginning in 1999, for the Fulbright Foundation for Educational Exchange between Canada and the United States. Created in 1990, the Fulbright Foundation has also received more than US$4 million in financial support from the private sector.

Finally, they agreed to develop a new Canada-U.S. Youth Co-op Training Exchange program to encourage private sector exchanges enabling U.S. and Canadian university students to receive training at private businesses in Canada and the United States.

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For further information, media representatives may contact:

Debora Brown

Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs

(613) 995-1851

Media Relations Office

Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade

(613) 995-1874

This document is also available on the Department's Internet site: http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca