[ad_1]
President Trump's tsar announced that the United States and Mexico are ready to leave Canada behind the North American Free Trade Agreement – and to move forward with a new version of the agreement in a few days.
"There is still a lot of distance between us," said US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer at a conference in New York. "If Canada comes later, then that will happen," he said.
The Trump administration announced last month that it had resolved disputes with Mexico over a new version of Nafta, and that it had announced its intention to sign an agreement with or without Canada at the end of the month. November.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland's office did not respond immediately to a request for comment on the US plans or the status of the negotiations.
Some US lawmakers and business groups have warned they are opposed to a bilateral agreement that excludes Canada. However, Lighthizer highlighted the pressure from US and other dairy farmers to improve trade conditions with the northern neighbor of the United States.
"Canada is not making concessions in areas that we deem essential," said Lighthizer on Tuesday, adding that "Canada would like to participate in the agreement."
Mr. Trump was elected with the promise to renegotiate Nafta to help American workers – or withdraw entirely from the agreement. Since then, government officials have adopted a rigorous bargaining approach to award concessions from Ottawa and Mexico City.
Tensions remained high with Canada. Trump attacked Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Twitter in June after the Group of Seven summit in Quebec. The two leaders have not planned to hold a bilateral meeting this week at the UN General Assembly, but the attendees do not reject the idea that they could talk together during the event.
The Nafta talks have already missed several deadlines, but Lighthizer said he was looking to move forward in the coming days with the agreement with Mexico so he has time to officially sign it before Andrés Manuel López Obrador takes office. in December.
Under US law, public servants are required to publish the text of a trade agreement at least 60 days before it is signed. This requirement means that Mr. Lighthizer must sign the agreement with Mexico – or perhaps a trilateral agreement, including Canada – in the coming days, according to congressional advisers and trade experts.
If the signing comes after the inauguration of the new Mexican president, "we have a new negotiation with López Obrador, and we do not know where that will happen," said Lighthizer at the annual summit sponsored by Concordia, an organization with nonprofit that seeks social change.
"If Canada comes later, then it's going to happen," he said.
What complicates negotiations with US neighbors is Trump's tariffs on imported steel and aluminum for reasons of national security, as well as the threat of tariffs on car imports. and auto parts.
Lighthizer said Mexico and Canada want to "clearly" be excluded from any tariff in the auto industry, but added that tariff lifting negotiations would move to the next stage of trade negotiations.
Write to William Mauldin at [email protected]
