Canada and the United States on Friday agreed to share more information about smuggling weapons and drugs across their shared border and vowed to review recent incidents of migrants dying along the border.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said Ottawa has signed four new or updated agreements with Washington that will allow the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency to share more data with their US counterparts.
Officials gave few details about what had changed significantly as a result of Friday’s agreements. But Mendicino said the agreements would allow Canada to specifically track ghost guns, which refers to untracked, privately made firearms used by gangs.
The announcement came during the Cross Border Crime Forum, which was attended by Mendicino, Canadian Attorney General David Lametti, US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas and US Attorney General Merrick Garland.
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The agreements aim to help stem the flow of opioids like fentanyl. Garland said authorities will track the ingredients used to create the deadly drug and the flow of its components from China.
“This means more joint investigations into arms smuggling and trafficking,” Mendicino said at a press conference.
“It’s about living in the moment, meeting the changes that are occurring, and tackling them in real-time — sharing actionable, relevant information in real-time,” Mayorkas said.
A joint statement said law enforcement agencies on both sides of the border would be trained to have a common understanding of both nations’ privacy laws.
The four leaders also pledged to review recent incidents of migrants dying along the border and pledged to hold people smugglers accountable and crack down on irregular migration with sensors, personnel and timely information.
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