Trump said to be pushing for initial deal by next week
MEXICO CITY The Trump administration is pushing for a preliminary NAFTA deal to announce at a summit in Peru next week, and will host cabinet ministers in Washington to try to achieve a breakthrough, according to three people familiar with the talks.
The White House wants leaders from Canada and Mexico to join in unveiling the broad outlines of an updated pact at the Summit of the Americas that begins April 13, while technical talks to hammer out the finer details and legal text could continue, according to the people. They asked not to be identified because the talks are private.
The three nations face a challenge to meet the U.S.’s goal because major divisions remain, including on the U.S. proposal for more North American content in automobiles. The White House declined to comment on plans to announce an accord for the North American Free Trade Agreement.
On Tuesday morning, Trump took to Twitter and reiterated a threat to pull out of NAFTA if Mexico doesn’t stop people and drugs from flowing into the U.S. from Central America. He also said U.S. aid to foreign nations, such as Honduras, could be at stake.
“The big Caravan of People from Honduras, now coming across Mexico and heading to our ‘Weak Laws’ Border, had better be stopped before it gets there,” Trump tweeted. “Cash cow NAFTA is in play, as is foreign aid to Honduras and the countries that allow this to happen. Congress MUST ACT NOW!”
America’s eagerness to strike a deal on its biggest trade pact comes as U.S. stocks tumbled, falling in seven of their last 10 trading sessions on concerns Trump’s protectionism could spark a trade war.
Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo will travel to Washington for meetings with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Wednesday, the people said. Some meetings could also include U.S. presidential adviser Jared Kushner and Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray, who have been managing the relationship between Trump and his Mexican counterpart, Enrique Pena Nieto, according to two of the people. Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland will arrive Thursday for her own meetings with Lighthizer, and meetings on Friday may include all three countries, the people said.
NAFTA negotiators are working under some political calendar pressure, with elections in Mexico in July and the U.S. in November threatening to complicate the process of reaching and approving a deal.
Negotiators from Mexico and Canada have been expecting an eighth round of NAFTA talks to start in Washington next week, though Lighthizer has pushed back against the idea and hasn’t yet sent an official invitation, according to the people. He says the three can make the most progress by holding regularly scheduled meetings between smaller groups of negotiators, they said.