MONTREAL, Sept 24, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
said Sunday it was “very likely” that informal talks aimed at renewing the
North American Free Trade Agreement would continue on the sidelines of the
United Nations General Assembly in New York over the next several days.
Officials have been in talks nearly non-stop for a month as they try to
overcome hurdles and agree on a NAFTA rewrite, under pressure from US
President Donald Trump to sign onto a deal reached in August with Mexico.
The latest round between Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and US
Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer ended Thursday without a deal.
“I don’t think there are any formal encounters planned,” Trudeau said as he
addressed a press conference after a meeting with his Spanish counterpart
Pedro Sanchez.
“But certainly the fact that many of our negotiators will be in New York at
the same time, it’s very likely that conversations continue in a constructive
but less formal way.”
Freeland, who leads the team of Canadian negotiators, is due to deliver
Canada’s speech to the UN General Assembly on Friday.
US President Donald Trump, who called NAFTA “one of the worst trade deals
in history,” demanded that the 1994 accord be revised. The talks started a
year ago.
The United States and Mexico sealed their own deal at the end of August,
after reaching agreement on auto content requirements and intend to sign the
accord by December 1, when Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez
Obrador takes office.
Ottawa and Washington remain at odds over Canada’s managed dairy sector,
and the dispute resolution provisions in NAFTA.
Trudeau also denied on Sunday that forthcoming provincial elections were
behind a delay in Canada signing on to a deal.
The provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec are set to hold legislative
elections on September 24 and October 1, respectively.
“I can say unequivocally that considerations around electoral timelines in
Quebec or New Brunswick or elsewhere has never been part of the equation for
us,” Trudeau said.
Quebec’s dairy sector in particular is one of the most powerful in the
country, and is pressuring the Canadian government not to compromise on
demands for increased access.