PM and Trump talk: U.S. in hurry for NAFTA deal, using tariff threat as leverage
WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke by phone with President Donald Trump on a day the United States revealed it might use the threat of tariffs as a negotiating tactic to force a quick NAFTA deal.
On Monday, Trump explicitly linked the fear of tariffs on steel and aluminum to the ongoing negotiation of NAFTA, then his trade czar elaborated: Robert Lighthizer said the U.S. is in a hurry to get an immediate NAFTA deal, and if it happens quickly Canada and Mexico just might avoid tariffs.
“We’re not backing down. … Right now, 100 per cent (chance we proceed with tariffs),” Trump said Monday in the Oval Office.
”But it could be a part of NAFTA.”