North America: Vision or Illusion?

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) dismantled barriers and nearly tripled trade and investment. However, it failed to address the development gap between Mexico and its northern neighbors, and it omitted any credible institutions to anticipate crises or shape a new partnership. Thus, instead of uniting to respond to Sept. 11 , old habits of U.S. unilateralism and Canadian and Mexican ambivalence prevailed, endangering further integration. We need to plan for the second decade of NAFTA by developing North American solutions to continental problems and opportunities.

Robert Pastor is Vice President of International Affairs and Professor of International Relations at American University, where he established and directs a new Center for North American Studies and a new Center for Democracy and Election Management. Professor Pastor was a fellow and founding director of the Latin American and Caribbean Program at the Carter Center from 1985-98. He has written 13 books, including Toward a North American Community: Lessons from the Old World for the New.