The Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau held a telephone conversation with Mexico’s President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador, requesting him to call the United States for an understanding in face of the challenging renegotiation of the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

After a meeting with the governor of Querétaro, Francisco Domínguez, the President-elect explained that the call had been made by Trudeau last Thursday night, and that Marcelo Ebrard, future chancellor of Mexico, would handle the situation shortly. López Obrador assured that he would not turn his back on the Canadian Government.

“He [Trudeau] asked me to intervene in calling the U.S. government for an understanding. We have made a commitment to do so with the best intentions towards both nations. We want to maintain a good relationship with Canada, but of course, also with the United States,” he claimed.

Trudeau also informed López Obrador that negotiations with the U.S. had taken a turn for the worse, but that the Canadian government had already brought a proposal before the United States government and was awaiting for a prompt response, meaning that the North American country was not close to dialogue regarding NAFTA.

López Obrador conveyed to the Prime Minister that he would continue to insist on maintaining NAFTA as a trilateral agreement, expressing his wish for an expeditious resolution between the United States and Canada.

“We have addressed our recommendation for dialogue in the most respectful manner. A lack of understanding should not stop us from resorting to dialogue,” he stressed.

However, he clarified that Mexico would not revise the agreement that has already been signed with the Trump administration and had no intentions of re-opening negotiations.

“We do not want to jeopardize our country’s financial future and stability. We want to foster investment in Mexico to generate employment and we will work towards economic and financial stability. This is why we have no intention of re-opening negotiations with the U.S. We consider that the deal has already been closed,” he emphasized.

Today marks the deadline for the agreement to be sent to the United States Congress and the Senate of Mexico.



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