(For a factbox on summit issues, click on [ID:nN06248501]) * Leaders address economic issues, drug trade * Cross-border trucking dispute rankles * "Buy American" provisions worry trading partners (Adds White House comments, Canada aid) By Patricia Zengerle and Mica Rosenberg GUADALAJARA, Mexico, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Leaders of the United States, Mexico and Canada -- also known as "the three amigos" -- talked about simmering trade issues and the threat from violent drug gangs as they began a summit on Sunday. At the top of their agenda is how to power their economies past a lingering downturn, keep trade flowing smoothly and grapple with Mexican gangs dominating the drug trade over the U.S. border and up into Canada. U.S. President Barack Obama told Mexican President Felipe Calderon when they met on Sunday evening he would work to resolve one thorny trade problem -- a lingering dispute over letting Mexican trucks drive into the United States. [ID:nN05268298] Under the North American Free Trade Agreement, Mexican trucks are supposed to be allowed to cross into the United States, but U.S. trucking companies say Mexican trucks are unsafe. Mexico imposed tariffs of $2.4 billion on U.S. goods in March after Obama signed a bill canceling a program allowing them to operate beyond the U.S. border zone. U.S. business groups have been pressing the White House to resolve the dispute, saying the ban threatens to eliminate thousands of U.S. jobs. "I think there's been a clear understanding that this issue was one that is a priority issue and one that everyone would like to see resolved as quickly as possible," a senior Obama administration official said. The two leaders held 45 minutes of cordial talks on trade, cooperation on the H1N1 flu virus, and the fight against the drug cartels, he said. Obama and Calderon will hold talks with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Monday. Obama's national security adviser, Jim Jones, said he doubted the leaders would announce major agreements, predicting the annual summit "is going to be a step in the continuing dialogue from which agreements will undoubtedly come." Canadian officials are expected to raise concerns about "Buy American" elements of a $787 billion economic stimulus program that they fear could shut out Canadian companies. Canada is the United States' largest trading partner. CANADA OFFERS MOUNTED POLICE Washington is worried about Mexican drug gangs killing rivals in record numbers, despite Calderon's three-year army assault on the cartels. [ID:nN06335232] But Mexico says U.S. equipment and training being given under a $1.4 billion "Merida Initiative" package are taking too long to arrive, partly due to concerns in the U.S. Congress over Mexico's human rights record. "President Obama, as he has on a number of occasions, underscored the importance of human rights for him, for the United States and, frankly, for Mexico," the administration official said. "And to be successful in the long run, dismantling and defeating these cartels requires commitment and confidence of people in all the countries affected and that we need to continue working in a manner that instills that confidence," the official said. Canada's Harper pledged up to $15 million a year to support the fight against drug traffickers in the Americas and offered the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to train Mexican police. The death rate in Mexico this year from the violence is about a third higher than in 2008, and police in the United States and Canada have blamed Mexican traffickers for crime. Many Mexicans say the police must be cleansed of corruption before receiving aid. "All of the police are bought by the narcos. Mexico's problem is corruption," said Maria Guzman, 64, a newspaper saleswoman in Guadalajara. Obama assured reporters from Hispanic media on Friday that due to the recession, now is not the time to reopen the NAFTA trade treaty, an issue that worries major exporter Mexico. A few hundred protesters from environmental groups and leftist political parties marched in Guadalajara on Sunday to a plaza near the colonial-era buildings housing the summit. Some demanded more U.S. support for Manuel Zelaya, the president of Honduras ousted in a military coup in June. Zelaya said in Ecuador on Sunday that Washington has done too little. U.S. officials have said they would like to see a Latin American solution to the Honduran crisis and have not listed it as a main summit issue. The leaders will also jointly address climate change as they prepare for major international talks in Copenhagen in December. Obama brought the new U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Carlos Pascual, with him on Air Force One, and a special ceremony has been organized for him to present his credentials. The U.S. Senate approved Pascual's appointment on Friday. (Additional reporting by Steve Holland and Anthony Boadle; Editing by Eric Beech)
An activist holds a Cuban flag in front of the US consulate during a protest in Guadalajara, August 9, 2009. Leaders of the United States, Mexico and Canada -- also known ...
