Guadalajara, Mexico  - Halting the spread of the swine flu virus that first broke out in Mexico in March will be a major topic when North American leaders gather this weekend.

US President Barack Obama, Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will meet in the western Mexican city of Guadalajara Sunday and Monday to discuss health, the economy, crime and other shared concerns.

The new A(H1N1) influenza virus that has evolved into a global pandemic is set to be a prominent topic at the meeting, as Obama, Harper and Calderon coordinate their response to the virus in the next North American flu season.

"The 2009 H1N1 influenza strain presents a significant public health challenge to the United States, and it is important that the United States works very closely with other countries to deal with this challenge," John Brennan, the US deputy national security advisor for counterterrorism and homeland security, said in a briefing ahead of the summit.

"The strategy and the effort on the part of the governments is to make sure we do everything possible and we collaborate to minimize the impact, and make sure that the severity of the illness is kept at a minimum," Brennan noted.

Economic recovery in the midst of the severe global financial crisis is also set to feature prominently in the fifth annual meeting of North American leaders, as they gear up for the Group of 20 (G20) summit in the US city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in late September. The welfare of Mexican migrants who live and work in the United States and Canada and who are suffering at a time of crisis are also likely to feature in the talks.

The fight against drug trafficking, which has left more than 9,000 dead in Mexico since January 2008, will also be a central issue in Guadalajara. A budding consensus has emerged in recent months in a traditionally thorny topic, with the Obama administration showing more support than its predecessors for Mexico's efforts to combat the drug cartels and reduce the US hunger for illicit drugs.

"Both of our efforts have to be coordinated, both of our efforts have to be strengthened," Obama said in April during his first visit to Mexico as president.

For years, Mexico had been demanding that the United States - the main market for the drugs exported by Mexican cartels and the origin of most of the firearms that fuel violence on Mexican soil - take more responsibility and contribute more in the fight against organized crime within Mexico.

In this context, Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa noted ahead of the weekend summit that the three North American nations are going through "a new era of agreements in the face of common challenges." (dpa)