President Trump said Wednesday that talks between the U.S. and Canada appear to be on a path to a final deal by Friday, the deadline set by the Trump administration.
“We gave ’til Friday, and I think we’re probably on track,” he told reporters at the White House. “We’ll see what happens.”
When asked if he’s optimistic about a final deal, Trump said, “I think so.”
“I think Canada very much wants to make the deal, and I think it’s going to be obviously very good for Canada if they do, and I think it’s probably not going to be good at all if they don’t,” he said.
Trump said Canada reached out to the U.S. as soon as it finished its separate trade agreement with Mexico, which Trump says isn’t a new NAFTA, but a U.S.-Mexico deal only. Trump said last week that Canada can decide to either reach a new deal with the U.S., or face new tariffs against its auto exports.
“We’ll see whether or not Canada gets into it, otherwise we’ll do something separately,” Trump reiterated Wednesday. “Or we won’t do anything, which is OK too.”
“I think they’re going really well,” Trump said of the talks. “Canada is here right now. They were here ’til late in the evening; they came to see us and wanted to meet us. They want to be a part of it.”
[Opinion: By bullying Canada on NAFTA Trump is trading long-term alliance for personal political victory]
