Mexico plans to launch a trial version of the U.S. Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism in the first half of this year, according a fact sheet provided by the Mexican Tax Administration Service (SAT).
Mexico's program, the Alliance for Secure Commerce, is modeled on the World Customs Organization's framework for secure trade as well as C-TPAT and Canada's Partners in Protection trusted shipper programs, which were originally designed to prevent terrorists from using international shipping conveyances to deliver bombs or materiel for an attack.
SAT, which was created with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the private sector, is also expected to reduce smuggling of drugs through regular trade channels. U.S. authorities consider drug smuggling a threat, aside from the criminal danger, because it reveals a breakdown in security procedures that could just as easily be exploited by terrorists.
