Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc says his side “certainly won’t be the source of any delay” in resolving negotiations on the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on free trade (CUSMA) that are expected to culminate this summer.
Speaking to Global News after appearing at the House of Commons standing committee on international trade Thursday, LeBlanc acknowledged public comments made earlier this month by U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer — who said it was unlikely that “all issues” surrounding the trade pact will be resolved by July 1 — were also made to him privately.
That’s not a “drop-dead date” for a deal to be reached, LeBlanc said, but he added Canada is ready to move as soon as the Americans are.
“We certainly won’t be the source of any delay,” he said.
“We’re ready to do the work to get to a deal very quickly. We’re prepared. We have submitted a number of proposals to the Americans. We continue to have a number of constructive meetings at all levels. So we are very much in conversations with them.”
LeBlanc told the committee he had a 45-minute phone call last Monday with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. He would not share details of their conversation but said it was “positive.”
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The minister added other conversations have been ongoing behind the scenes between U.S. Ambassador Mark Wiseman, Canada’s new chief U.S. trade negotiator Janice Charette and their various American counterparts.
July is the required deadline for the U.S. to notify Canada and Mexico about its plans for CUSMA.
The CUSMA review sets up a three-way choice for each country: they can renew the deal for another 16 years, withdraw from it, or signal both non-renewal and non-withdrawal — which triggers an annual review that could keep negotiations going for up to a decade.
Both Greer and U.S. President Donald Trump have previously floated the idea of abandoning the trade pact in favour of two separate bilateral agreements. Trump has also mused that CUSMA, which he negotiated during his first term as president, may be irrelevant.
LeBlanc told the committee that Canada continues to engage with the Trump administration on reaching a comprehensive agreement that covers both the CUSMA issues and relief for tariff-affected sectors like steel, aluminum, autos and lumber.
“We’re not prepared to deal with these things as a one-off,” he said.
“If we’re going to resolve some of these issues that Ambassador Greer referred to, Canada is ready and willing to do that work, but as part of a deal, a larger agreement that brings relief to sectors of the Canadian economy that are under considerable pressure now and brings greater certainty around the USMCA or CUSMA review process.”
Those conversations were renewed in earnest in March when LeBlanc travelled to Washington to meet with Greer for the first time in months.
The U.S. has since outlined a number of ongoing trade issues with Canada, including supply management and policies like the Online Streaming Act.
LeBlanc reaffirmed Thursday under questioning from the Bloc Quebecois that supply management was not on the table in the CUSMA negotiations.
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