Says he will renegotiate the deal instead of pulling out of it as threatened earlier

Tempering yet another of his campaign promises, U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will not withdraw the country from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico. Mr. Trump presented his mellowed position — earlier he had threatened to terminate the treaty — as a response to pleas from the leaders of the northern and southern neighbours of the U.S.

“I received calls from the President of Mexico and the Prime Minister of Canada asking to renegotiate NAFTA rather than terminate. I agreed, subject to the fact that if we do not reach a fair deal for all, we will then terminate NAFTA. Relationships are good-deal very possible!” Mr. Trump tweeted on Thursday morning.

Earlier, when he abandoned his attempt to open up the U.S.’s ‘one-China’ policy for negotiation, he presented that too as in response to a request from Chinese President Xi Jinping.

‘Worst deal’

As an intense stocktaking is underway in the U.S. on the first 100 days of Mr. Trump’s presidency, his promise with regard to NAFTA has been in sharp focus. Mr. Trump had described NAFTA as the worst trade deal, and had blamed former President Bill Clinton for it.

Though it was Mr. Clinton who signed the deal, his predecessor George W. Bush had concluded the negotiations. Some reports last week speculated that an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from NAFTA was on the anvil ahead of the 100 days mark on April 29. Republican and Democratic lawmakers had warned the President against launching a trade war against the neighbours.

Earlier, the White House said Mr. Trump “agreed not to terminate NAFTA at this time and the leaders would proceed swiftly to enable the renegotiation to the benefit of all three countries”.

In a written statement, the President said: “It is my privilege to bring NAFTA up to date through renegotiation... It is an honour to deal with both President Peña Nieto and Prime Minister (Justin) Trudeau, and I believe that the end result will make all three countries stronger and better.”

Any unilateral measures by the U.S. against NAFTA could have a cascading impact on the economy of all the three countries. The trade among these three is now $ 1.1 trillion, up from the 1993 levels of $290 billion, when the treaty was signed.