Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland had four meetings with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer yesterday, yet there was no conclusion in trade negotiation yet. Freeland said “no, we don’t have an agreement,” and talks would “reconvene in the morning” on Friday.
She added that “we continue to be encouraged by the constructive atmosphere,” and “there’s a lot we’re trying to do in a short period of time.” And for now, Freeland is “focused on working hard on our issues with the United States”, not the Mexico yet.
Diary is a key topic in the negotiation and Labour Congress President Hassan Youssef hinted that “the Canadian public should expect the American dairy industry will probably have more access to Canada by the time this agreement is concluded and we should not lose sleep over it,”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s spokesman reiterated his stance that ” the federal government remains committed to ensuring that any agreement is in the best interests of Canadians.”
The United States, Canada and Mexico are trying to come up with at least a preliminary agreement in principle by Friday, a deadline unilaterally set by Trump.
