North American integration

North American integration is the process of economic and political integration in North America, particularly integration of Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

While Ronald Reagan was organizing his run for the 1980 U.S. presidential election, two of his policy advisers, Richard V. Allen and Peter Hannaford, were traveling with him in Europe. They developed and proposed to him an idea regarding cooperation in North America, especially in the energy sector. A few months later, another colleague, domestic policy advisor Martin Anderson, suggested calling the proposal the "North American Accord". It would create a common market among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Reagan saw this proposal as a solution to undocumented immigration and other problems between the U.S. and its neighbors. Despite being greeted with some skepticism and resistance from leaders in Canada and Mexico, Reagan endorsed the idea when he formally announced his candidacy in November 1979.

Reagan eventually found a sympathetic voice in Canada after a 1985 report by a Canadian government commission suggested pursuing a free trade agreement with the United States. After becoming prime minister in 1984, Brian Mulroney responded by initiating discussions with the United States and these negotiations culminated with the signing of the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in 1988. This agreement served as a template for American negotiations with Mexico that were eventually expanded to include Canada in what became the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Jorge Castañeda, serving as a policy advisor to then Mexican presidential candidate Vicente Fox, was influenced by Robert Pastor's ideas on deepening integration of NAFTA and encouraged Fox to adopt these policies as part of his campaign. Before and after the election Fox made appearances on several U.S. news programs advocating greater integration including a plan to open up the U.S.–Mexico border within ten years. Around this time a number of proposals were also put forward for an expansion of the NAFTA agreement, generically called "NAFTA-Plus." After taking office, Vicente Fox proposed one such plan to President George W. Bush of the United States and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien that would move towards a supranational union in the form of the European Union. Fox's proposal was rejected by President Bush.

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