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The question for Trudeau is whether he wants to play along.

He has refused to commit to any timeframe, but reportedly was ready to do a deal in the spring until the Trump administration insisted on a sunset clause that would have put NAFTA up for renegotiation every five years. Chrystia Freeland, the global affairs minister, cut short a visit to Europe to get to Washington, and Trudeau said he had a “constructive” phone conversation with Trump before the US-Mexico agreement was announced.

The question for Trudeau is whether he wants to play along

Scotiabank’s House called the end-of-month deadline “unrealistic,” given the U.S. and Mexico have left less than a week to address Canada’s priorities. Other observers thought an agreement by Aug. 31 could be possible with a lot of effort. That’s because the issues identified as Canadian priorities conceivably could be resolved relatively quickly.

Canada created extra import quotas for dairy in its agreement with the European Union, so there is no reason it shouldn’t do the same for its NAFTA partners. The U.S. and Mexico agreed to a sunset provision that would be triggered after 16 years, which is enough time for companies to plan an investment without having to worry about the rules changing. Trudeau might even be able to call that a win.

That leaves dispute settlement, or Chapter 19 of NAFTA, which is the section Canada has relied on to check against the U.S. capriciousness when it comes to punitive import tariffs. Canada has indicated that the provision must remain, but the U.S. and Mexico agreed to a watered down version.

Will Trudeau bargain on that point, considering the U.S. initially wanted to strip it from a revised agreement? If he does, he could face problems in Parliament. O’Toole published a short YouTube video on Aug. 14 on the NAFTA talks in which he lists three priorities, including dispute settlement. “We need to maintain Chapter 19,” he said, loudly.

• Email: kcarmichael@nationalpost.com | Twitter: carmichaelkevin