Trump hints at bilateral trade with Canada
Posted Oct 11, 2017 04:57:08 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump says he’d be willing to negotiate a free trade deal directly with Canada in the event NAFTA talks fail.
But Trump says it’s not yet clear whether talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement will succeed.
The president made the remarks in the Oval Office at the start of a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose visit coincides with the start of a fourth round of talks in nearby Alexandria, Va.
He says it’s possible the talks to renegotiate NAFTA will fail, but that he could see the U.S. striking a new deal with Canada.
It’s no secret that the president is not a fan of NAFTA, but it’s the first time he’s ever mused publicly about the possibility of a new agreement with America’s northern neighbour.
Trudeau’s visit to Washington comes amid early signs of trouble in the NAFTA negotiations, with big business groups now expressing fear the quarter-century-old deal could disappear.<
