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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office on Wednesday. He reiterated his stance that the United States doesn’t need ‘anything’ from its USMCA partners.Julia Demaree Nikhinson/The Associated Press
Donald Trump said he’s not looking to renew the North American trade pact, as Prime Minister Mark Carney met virtually with Canada’s premiers Wednesday to talk strategy.
Speaking with reporters in the Oval Office, the U.S. President repeated his past comments that the United States doesn’t need “anything” from Canada and Mexico.
“I’m not looking to renew it,” Mr. Trump said, before noting that he approved the 2018 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement during his first term. “I made the deal, and the primary reason I made the deal is that NAFTA was the worst trade deal I’ve ever seen. USMCA did one thing that I loved. After six years, it comes up for renewal. I don’t know that I’m going to renew it.”
Mr. Carney did not respond when asked on Parliament Hill about the President’s comment that he’s not looking to renew the trade deal.
He did respond when asked Wednesday morning about his meeting with the premiers, saying briefly that the focus would be on “the U.S. and the electricity strategy,” including Canada’s pledge to double electricity generation in Canada.
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Prime Minister Mark Carney arrives at a caucus meeting in Ottawa on Wednesday.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Mr. Carney and the premiers met virtually early Wednesday afternoon.
The three countries are meant to decide on July 1 whether to extend the treaty for another 16 years. If they don’t agree to an extension, the treaty will remain in force, but the countries will move to a period of annual reviews for 10 years.
Officials from all three countries have said they expect negotiations to continue beyond July 1, meaning the annual-review scenario is much more likely. Any of the countries can withdraw from the agreement with six months’ notice.
Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc has sought to downplay the significance of the July 1 deadline, telling reporters earlier this month that it is important “not to set up a cliff that doesn’t exist.”
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe told reporters Wednesday that such comments can be expected as part of the negotiations toward a new trade deal.
“There’s going to be a lot of rhetoric that will occur as we go through this review process,” he said in Calgary on the sidelines of the Global Energy Show Canada.
“Our goal is to get to a preferred nation trade deal with the U.S., preferably looks something like what the CUSMA deal we have today is. That’s our goal. We won’t be responding to daily comments that come out of the White House, or even at times come out of various levels of Canadian leadership.”
After one year under Carney, results on trade diversification are mixed
So far, the Trump administration has chosen to approach the trade talks on a bilateral basis, beginning formal negotiations with Mexico City last month without Canada at the table.
U.S. trade officials have said they are looking to resolve bilateral concerns with each of Canada and Mexico, and to make trilateral changes to USMCA, with the goal of boosting U.S. content and reducing Chinese parts in North American supply chains.
For the crucial auto sector, the U.S. has proposed raising the North American content requirement to 82 per cent from 75 per cent, and introducing a rule that 50 per cent of a car must be made of U.S. parts to receive preferential tariffs.
The main goal for Canada and Mexico in the trade talks is getting some relief from the sectoral tariffs the U.S. has placed on key industries such as automobiles, steel, aluminum and lumber, while preserving the carve-out from other U.S. tariffs offered to USMCA-compliant goods.
Any resolution could involve separate deals for Mexico and Canada. America’s top trade official, Jamieson Greer, has said he wants to preserve the “pillars” of the USMCA while layering separate bilateral deals with Canada and Mexico on top.
With files from Emma Graney in Calgary
