Step 1 in NAFTA renegotiation could start within two weeks: Ross
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government hopes to take the first formal step in renegotiating NAFTA within the next couple of weeks, setting the stage for actual negotiations with Canada and Mexico later this year.
The Trump administration could officially advise Congress within two weeks of its intention to renegotiate the quarter-century-old agreement, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Friday.
That would begin a minimum 90-day consultation phase. The administration would then spend a few months collecting input on what positions it should bring to the negotiating table, gathering that advice from lawmakers and industry advisory committees before real negotiations start as early as summer.
It may well take longer than 90 days: American lawmakers have a daunting to-do list that includes more pressing priorities, such as health reform and the first major change to U.S. corporate taxes since the 1980s.