Pacific Rim Trade: Pacific Alliance

Pacific Alliance: Mr. Harper will travel to Colombia to meet the leaders of a new trade bloc, the Pacific Alliance, to consider whether Canada should join. The alliance might be the next big thing in Pacific Rim trade, quickly reducing barriers between emerging Latin American nations and then with Asia, according to Globe and Mail. The members of the Pacific Alliance Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru have dropped visa requirements so their citizens can travel freely within the bloc without forms and fees. They d expect Canada to do the same if it joins, letting their citizens visit without getting a visa in advance. They find Canadas visa-application process onerous, and say it rejects too many tourists and business people and In Cali, Colombia, next week, Stephen Harper will ponder a choice driven by the forces of globalization. Trade talks are increasingly applying pressure on Canada to lower restrictions on foreigners entering the country, and in turn, squeezing the refugee-protection system. But the biggest obstacle for Canada isnt reducing barriers on goods crossing the border, its lowering restrictions on people. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.