By Kate Davis I s Trudeau optimistic or out of touch with reality when it comes to Canada, the U.S. and Mexico striking a new NAFTA deal that benefits all three countries even after signals from the Trump Administration have frequently left the impression that the North American Free Trade Agree- ment is doomed unless the U.S does the winning. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened repeat- edly to pull out NAFTA however, Trudeau has been dismissing these threats from the U.S. as a negotiat- ing tactic saying, “Our approach has been braced for a certain level of negotiations and back and forth, but our approach is consistent, that we know that there is a good deal to be had that will benefit Canada and the United States and Mexico and we’re going to stay focused on reaching that in ways that benefit us all.” With NAFTA talks entering a pivotal moment as the U.S. turns up the pressure on Canada and Mexico to radically alter the trade pact in favor of American inter- ests and with the sixth round of talks now underway in Montreal, there has been plenty of posturing from the three countries.
Through negotia- tions a somewhat consis- tent pattern has emerged. Canada and Mexico trying to bring new ideas to the negotiation table to try to resolve some of the U.S issues brought forward while U.S. President Donald Trump keeps threaten- ing to withdraw from the NAFTA unless the U.S. get a more favorable deal in the agreement that more than $1 trillion (USD) in goods traded annually between the three countries. The fact that Trudeau remains optimistic that a deal can be worked out, as it seems that Trump is pushing for more of a winner take all approach to the negotiations is con- cerning for businesses and industry in all three coun- tries and one that they hope does not become a reality. However, for some the negotiations is not a matter of “if” but “when” Trump is going to pull the plug on the agreement. the
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JANUARY 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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