Trade, security focus at "Three amigos" summit

GUADALAJARA, Mexico (Reuters) - Leaders of the United States, Mexico and Canada -- also known as "the three amigos" -- began a summit on Sunday in Mexico to talk about simmering trade issues and the threat of drug gangs.

U.S. President Barack Obama, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon gathered in Guadalajara for dinner on Sunday night, to be followed by three-way talks on Monday.

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.

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."

Obama is expected to get some heat from Calderon to resolve a cross-border trucking dispute.

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 cancelling 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.

"Obviously, this issue is going to come up, and the president is committed to making sure that we fulfil our international obligations and that any regulations and so forth that are put into place are consistent with our agreements," deputy press secretary Bill Burton told reporters aboard Air Force One during the trip to Guadalajara.

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.

Canada's Harper, on his arrival in Mexico, 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.

"Supporting police training in Mexico is one of the most effective ways to fight organized crime and drug trafficking within Canada," a statement from Harper's office said.

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.

Obama has promised full support to Calderon. "He is doing the right thing by going after them and he has done so with tremendous courage," Obama said.

But Mexico says U.S. equipment and training being given under a $1.4 billion package are taking too long to arrive.

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 unilaterally 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.

"I think President Obama should explain why his measures have been so weak against the coup d'etat," Zelaya said.

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 discuss H1N1 swine flu and 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 to Mexico's government. The U.S. Senate approved Pascual's appointment on Friday.

(Writing by Steve Holland; Additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle and Anthony Boadle; Editing by Xavier Briand)