US Coast Guard-RCMP Integration Stepped Up

Since June 2013,the US Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Mounted Police have more fully integrated their operations in the Great Lakes and Vancouver,British Columbia areas.At that time,the Integrated Cross-Border Maritime Law Enforcement Operations,ICMLEO,were finalised.The program,also called Shiprider,had been successfully tested from 2005-10 at such events as the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and G20 and G8 summits.*
Under Shiprider,specially trained and designated USCG and RCMP members ride on each other's boats and have law enforcement powers on both sides of the border.The USCG members are trained in Canadian law and procedure;the RCMP members are trained in US law and procedure.When the jointly crewed vessels enter either country,the appropriate member assumes supervision.
The old method of two nations separately patrolling binational waters was found to be cumbersome,presenting significant logistical and communications challenges to law enforcement,while benefiting elusive criminals.Shiprider allows teams to seamlessly move across the border and transition lead agencies,depending on where suspects are going,while respecting the sovereignty of both nations.*
Shiprider basically involves jointly detecting,monitoring and boarding of suspicious vessels on both sides of the US-Canadian border,making arrests as warranted.The focus is on the smuggling of drugs,weapons and humans.
According to RCMP Sgt.Peter Koersvelt,it allows us to simply transition lead agencies and intercept the vessel and contraband.We have the ability under exigent circumstances to come ashore.We can also do surge operations for special events.It's only on shared,undisputed waterways.Electronic charters and plotters on the vessels,as well as shore operations centres,determine which country they are in at any given time.*
Some Canadians expressed concern about the program's effect on Canadian sovereignty.An online poll conducted by CBC-Windsor in June showed that 66.28% of respondents approved of Shiprider,while 33.72% opposed.
The program is reminiscent of NORAD,the North American Aerospace Defense Command,which has successfully integrated US and Canadian aerospace defence for decades.