Americans in foul mood as NAFTA talks resume
U.S. negotiator ‘extremely frustrated’
Canada will be hosting an annoyed and angry United States as the sixth round of talks in the North American Free Trade Agreement renegotiation unfolds over the coming week.
The Trump administration is making known its displeasure about Canada’s contributions to date and demanding progress over the marathon 10-day session.
Multiple sources aware of the U.S. administration’s views say the acrimony has a variety of causes, including Canada’s recent decision to file a sweeping complaint about U.S. trade practices at the World Trade Organization and its pursuit of a trade agenda that includes Indigenous and labour provisions.
The rhetoric around its implacable rejection of the most controversial U.S. positions — raising continental content provisions on automobiles, scrapping a dispute resolution mechanism, limiting Canadian access to U.S. procurement, and instituting a five-year sunset clause — are all fuelling the U.S. animosity towards Canada, say sources.
Sources familiar with the Canadian position dismiss all that and say the tone is professional and cordial. They say Canadian negotiators are making constructive proposals to find common ground with the Americans on what some have called poison pills designed to kill the deal.
It will be another week before Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, American counterpart Robert Lighthizer and Mexico’s Ildefonso Guajardo arrive in Montreal on Jan. 29 to close the extended round that gets underway earlier than planned on Sunday.
The way some see it, Lighthizer is in no hurry to come back to Canada.
“The feeling of ill will between Bob Lighthizer’s office and the Canadians — I don’t think you can underestimate it,” said Sarah Goldfeder, a former U.S. diplomat who now represents American clients in an Ottawa consultancy.
“He’s extremely frustrated with China and Canada,” added Goldfeder.
“Those are the two countries he thinks are being most unfair to the United States … Those are the ones taking up a good chunk of his time, and not in positive ways.”
Goldfeder noted that when Freeland went to Washington two weeks ago she met Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and members of Congress — but not Lighthizer.
When Guajardo visited later in the month, Lighthizer’s door was open to him, she said.
Freeland’s office didn’t reply to a request for comment on the lack of a meeting with Lighthizer.
Colin Robertson, a retired diplomat with extensive experience in the U.S., said the body language between Lighthizer and Freeland is “terrible,” which is telling.
“He’s a bully and she gets under his skin,” said Robertson.
“She and Guajardo are amigos. No one would say that about Freeland and Lighthizer.”
Lighthizer isn’t willing to blow up NAFTA over the WTO challenge, but Canada should brace for some bilateral retaliation. Meanwhile, his office isn’t interested in the Canadian progressive trade agenda — entrenching Indigenous, gender and workers’ rights issues in the pact — because it has the whiff of Canada dictating social policy to the U.S., Goldfeder said.
Lori Wallach, the director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, a group normally at odds with the Republicans, was also critical of the Canadian posture.
“Canada is 100 per cent not engaged. Mexico started engaging in the last month or so,” said Wallach, who knows Lighthizer. “Probably after the Montreal round, that increases the prospect that there could be a notice of withdrawal.”