NAFTA talks resume after break in negotiations
Washington, Sept 6 (IBNS): Canada has returned to the discussion table on North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in Washington on Wednesday, media reports said.
The US administration's failure to secure a deal did not go down well with the Congress.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters that officials continued their work over the weekend after negotiations failed on Friday.
Couple of days ago, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday cleared that the Liberals won't compromise on culture and dispute resolution during the talks over North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
Trudeau said Canada won't sign a new deal if it does not include a dispute resolution mechanism and exemptions from cultural industries.
He has been quoted by CTV News as saying, "We've said from the very beginning that we need a dispute resolution mechanism like Chapter 19 and we will hold firm on that."
"We will not sign a deal that is bad for Canadians and, quite frankly, not having a Chapter 19 to ensure that the rules are followed would be bad for Canadians."
Trudeau added, "So we've made it very clear that defending that cultural exemption is something that is fundamental to Canadians."
Earlier this month, Trump hinted at a possibility to sign the new NAFTA deal without Canada.
Trump also warned the Congress for interfering in the matter.
He tweeted, "There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal. If we don’t make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out. Congress should not interfere w/ these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off..."
Terming NAFTA as the worst trade deal, the US President said the country was better without the pact.
Not ruling out an exit from NAFTA, Trump tweeted, "....Remember, NAFTA was one of the WORST Trade Deals ever made. The U.S. lost thousands of businesses and millions of jobs. We were far better off before NAFTA - should never have been signed. Even the Vat Tax was not accounted for. We make new deal or go back to pre-NAFTA!"
NAFTA is an agreement which came into force from January 1994 by Canada, Mexico and United States creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America.
Trump had earlier also alleged that the US faced severe losses in the trade pact with Canada and Mexico.
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