The U.S. and Canada renew the NORAD agreement.(Sec. of State Warren Christopher; Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy)(Transcript)

Secretary Christopher. Good morning. In just a minute I will tell you what we've done here, but first let me say that I am delighted to welcome Lloyd Axworthy, the new Canadian Foreign Minister, on his first visit to Washington.

The United States and Canada built a very strong partnership based upon the many interests and values that we share. I know the Foreign Minister and I will have a comparably useful and effective partnership. We have begun to get acquainted, and there is no doubt that we are going to have a very fine relationship.

As I think is well-known, our commitment to a common defense has long been the heart of our cooperation. The mechanism has been the North American Aerospace Defense Command - we have called that "NORAD" for such a long time that we have forgotten what the real words are. First established in 1958, NORAD remains an integral part of our defenses, as well as a symbol of our trust and confidence on which our whole relationship is based.

We have just now signed a renewal of the NORAD agreement, so we are …