Canada seeks co-operation on trade with Trump at helm

The Canadian government is signalling the approach it intends to take should Donald Trump make good on his promise to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Canada’s ambassador to the United States is laying out some starting principles, such as co-operation instead of confrontation.

In an interview, David MacNaughton expressed his desire to see the countries propose common-ground, common-sense ideas that improve the old agreement instead of flinging out hardball demands that could produce deep, drama-filled bargaining.

“We have done an extensive amount of work (to prepare for this),” MacNaughton said. “We have a good sense of what would be in Canada’s interest … (But) the areas we need to focus on — and I think we are focusing on — is where it is not just in Canada’s

interest, but in Canada and the United States’ interest … I think if we’re just blatantly trying to push something that works for us but doesn’t work for them, that’s not going to be … quite as easy.”

There’s already enough potential for trade tussles with the incoming Trump administration.

They include the incoming president’s vow to fight certain tax policies of other countries; his preference for Buy American restrictions on infrastructure projects; the ongoing softwood lumber dispute; and increasing anger from American dairy producers over Canadian import restrictions.

On Buy American, MacNaughton says his team has been talking to the United Steelworkers union which has members in both countries, and whose president is Canadian Leo Gerard, in the hope of getting an exemption for Canadian steel — such as the one eventually worked out between Stephen Harper and Barack Obama following the 2009 U.S. stimulus bill.

They’ve warned Americans they’ve talked to that penalizing Canadian steel might threaten co-operation in international forums, where Canada and the United States work together to fight product dumping.

“They can’t put up barriers to importation of steel in the United States and expect us to be working with them, hand in glove, to prevent abuses from third countries. So we’ve made that point.”

Aware of the irritants that could erupt in 2017, Ottawa has already begun reaching out to potential U.S. allies to bolster its public advocacy on some of these issues.

But the government wants to avoid having irritants inject uncertainty into discussions about the trade treaty that governs the region where Canada sells more than three-quarters of its exports.

MacNaughton wouldn’t elaborate on the specific improvements he has in mind, saying he wants to avoid negotiating in public.

He did confirm one potential change: to professional visas.

International businesses have complained about an out-of-date visa system that creates unnecessary red tape when employees cross the border for work. When asked about visas, MacNaughton confirmed that was the type of mutually beneficial upgrade he favours.

It’s also unclear what the incoming administration actually wants from Canada — Trump hardly ever mentioned the northern neighbour during the campaign, even as he railed against NAFTA.

MacNaughton said he’s received some encouraging signals about its attitude toward Canada.

So what does he want to see from the next U.S. administration?

MacNaughton goes right back to the original point: “Make NAFTA work better, rather than throw out the baby with the bathwater.”