U.S., MEXICO TO BEGIN TRUCK BORDER TALKS

U.S., MEXICO TO BEGIN TRUCK BORDER TALKS    Acting under orders from the White House, U.S. transportation and trade officials will meet with their Mexican counterparts within 30 days to begin talks on opening up U.S. borders to Mexican trucking.
   The White House position surfaced after a dispute resolution panel ruled that the United States failed to observe a North American Free Trade Agreement mandate to open the U.S./Mexico border to Mexican trucking. Under the mandate, the border was to be opened and Mexican trucks were to have full access to U.S. markets by Jan. 1, 2000.
   Currently, Mexican trucks are limited to commercial zones along the border. Such zones run from two to 20 miles inland from the border.
   The access issue was put on hold by the Clinton Administration, which was concerned over truck safety issues. However, Mexico claimed that U.S. position amounted to an “economic embargo.”
   David DeCarme, chief of the Maritime and Surface Division of the Department of Transportation’s office of International Transportation and Trade, disclosed the bilateral talk plans at a forum sponsored by the U.S.-Mexico Chamber of Commerce.
   DeCarme’s office negotiated the land transportation provisions of the NAFTA.