President Trump informed Mexican President Pena Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday afternoon that he will not pull the U.S. from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) despite reports earlier in the day that he had considered doing so.
Trump’s separate conversations with both North American leaders were “pleasant and productive,” the White House said in a statement issued late Wednesday.
The three leaders agreed to proceed quickly with renegotiation plans as the initial review process comes to a close.
“[I]t is my privilege to bring NAFTA up to date through renegotiation. It is an honor to deal with both President Peña Nieto and Prime Minister Trudeau, and I believe that the end result will make all three countries stronger and better,” Trump said in the statement.
Trump reiterated that commitment in a tweet Thursday moring. But he still warned that “we will terminate NAFTA” if those talks don’t reach a “fair deal for all.”
I received calls from the President of Mexico and the Prime Minister of Canada asking to renegotiate NAFTA rather than terminate. I agreed..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 27, 2017
…subject to the fact that if we do not reach a fair deal for all, we will then terminate NAFTA. Relationships are good-deal very possible!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 27, 2017
Trump had proposed abandoning NAFTA in an executive order as early as Thursday.
The administration’s sudden withdrawal from the deal could make Canada and Mexico more desperate to strike a deal that the U.S. wants. If talks fail, the White House could incidentally remove America from one of the largest trade deals in the world.
Trump pulled the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which former President Barack Obama had created among 12 countries.
The deal was first created by the Clinton administration in 1994 as a way to ensure no tariffs of goods between the three countries. Trump campaigned on rescinding NAFTA.
