Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. It's nice to be back. I'm sorry I'm not there with you in person. I will withhold judgment on whether it is really nice to be back until after you finish with me, but I'm sure that we'll have a good session.
The key message that I want to leave with you today is to stress the importance of the NAFTA relationship and the broader economic region that we live and work in, to encourage a more proactive set of efforts from the three governments to identify obstacles to growth and opportunities to develop, and to raise awareness of the importance of collaborating among the three governments to strengthen the region.
I'm sure you've heard from the previous witnesses on the importance of trade, energy, transportation, and national security. I'm not going to elaborate on that. The only thing I would say in addition to what has probably already been said is that you might also want to refer to the Zoellick-Petraeus report that was done under the auspices of the Council on Foreign Relations.
I think the broad conclusion is that we have a very strong integrated relationship. It's peaceful. There's a growing convergence and economic performance among the three countries. There are minor political tensions that have been discussed by earlier witnesses, but it's probably the best three-way relationship in the world, and certainly one of the strongest economically.
There's been good progress over the past 20 years. I think NAFTA itself has been a great success with a major increase in trade, investment, and economic integration. That is best seen in the NAFTA supply chain, which has allowed a number of our small and medium-sized companies to get much more engaged in the North American economy. Between the U.S. and Canada, with border management, the Beyond the Border agreement, the regulatory work under the regulatory cooperation council, national security cooperation, and the recent agreement for pre-clearances, another good example, I think it's a good relationship. Mexico is certainly of growing importance in trade and investment, banking, and manufacturing. A number of our companies are operating in Mexico.
But we have to step back and look at where we fit in the world. We live in a very competitive world today. The EU is quite coordinated both economically and politically. Asia, less so, but it is certainly a strong competitor, as are the non-aligned countries, particularly the BRIC countries of China, Russia, Brazil, and India. But as we've heard from others, there are headwinds in each of our countries. We have to try to deal with that as effectively as we can, with the potential competition growing as the years progress.
Let me just comment on a couple of areas of concern and then come to my basic conclusion. I think you've had some discussion this morning on the TPP and the conclusion of the EU agreement. On energy, we have the issues with the Keystone pipeline, but also with the shifting market fundamentals with the shale revolution and the potential of greater production from Mexico. How are we going to manage all of this in the most effective way? Just as I was tuning in on your meeting, there was some discussion on the tone from the top. I'm not going to point fingers here but I think each of our countries has contributed to a weakening in the commitment from the top.
I think the overriding consideration here is that we live in a fast changing world and much more has to be done in collaboration, I believe, to take advantage of this.
My basic point here is that we enjoy a strong position. We have many advantages now. The obstacles we're currently facing are certainly ones that can be overcome. The private sector is doing a very good job, but to maintain and to build on this, I believe we should have a proactive effort of dialogue and collaboration among our three governments, not just with the three leaders but with the key ministerial-level actors in the key areas, the important areas. This should also entail in-depth consultations with our private sectors.
What I would envisage here is a well-planned and comprehensive meeting of the three leaders on an annual basis, with a reporting of the activities in the key areas and agreement on a set of objectives looking forward. I would see this to be complemented effectively by our embassies and the six ambassadors we have within our three countries who can do very effective work on the ground.
But I think the important thing here is that we must develop a greater sense of where we stand as three countries working together to strengthen the North American region. We have the trade relationship to build on, but there's much more to be done to expand on the cooperation to strengthen our position in the world.
Now, I'm not recommending a common market or any limits on our national sovereignty here, but I do envisage a higher degree of cooperative activity in the key areas. We do have irritants among the three countries. There are the visa requirements—that was commented on just now—and KXL, obviously, and immigration issues. They're I think the three most high-profile ones. I don't deny that these exist, but I feel that if we broaden the dialogue, if we raise our sights as to what is important and what can be achieved among our three countries and do so in a very visible way, we can elevate the importance of this strong position that we hold collectively and hopefully pave the way for agreements whose positive results can raise our game and overcome these difficulties.
Let me close with some comments on this as it relates to the role of members of Parliament here.
I would encourage all of you individually to build relationships with your counterparts in the other two countries. Take advantage of the Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group. I was involved in it when I was a member of Parliament, and I found it to be particularly useful both in the discussions we had at the IPG meetings and in my time as a minister, when I carried through with some of the relationships that I had there.
I'll mention just one. Bill Frenzel, a very prominent trade expert, was very helpful during the course of the free trade agreements between the U.S. and Canada and helped me in dealings with others such as Sam Gibbons, who was the chair of the subcommittee on trade.
These relationships I think can be very positive for you. I would encourage you to consider expanding the U.S.-Canada IPG to include Mexico, and if that's not possible, to develop an IPG as it relates to Mexico and Canada working together.
With that, Mr. Chairman, thank you very much for the opportunity. I look forward to any questions you have.