The U.S. wants Canada to expand dairy market access for American products and lift provincial bans on U.S. alcohol as part of the upcoming review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), Washington’s top trade envoy says.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told members of Congress this week the joint review “will depend on the successful resolution” of those and other issues, according to a copy of his opening statement shared online after the closed-door meetings.
The statement also lists “the impact of Canada’s Online Streaming Act and Online News Act for U.S. digital service providers,” “discriminatory procurement measures in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia,” and “complicated customs registration for Canadian recipients of U.S. exports” as other issues to address. “Unfair treatment” of Montana electricity providers by Alberta was another item listed.
For both Canada and Mexico, Greer listed efforts to strengthen rules of origin for non-automotive industrial goods and “mechanisms to penalize offshoring of U.S. production” to the other two North American countries.
The statement says the list of issues came from public consultations the U.S. has engaged in this fall to prepare for the mandatory review set for next July.
CUSMA “has been successful to a certain degree” and “provided some certainty for North American trade,” Greer told the U.S. House ways and means committee and the U.S. Senate finance committee on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the opening statement.
“But at the same time, it is clear that we have not achieved all of our goals with respect to strengthening U.S. manufacturing capacity and creating good jobs, and nearly all stakeholders advocate improvements.”
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Greer goes on to lay out “shortcomings” in the trade pact, some of which are specific to Mexico and Canada.
“For its part, Canada insists on maintaining its Online Streaming Act, a law that discriminates against U.S. tech and media firms, as well as a number of other measures that restrict digital services trade,” Greer said.
“Canada also maintains policies that unfairly restrict market access for U.S. dairy products.”
Canada’s supply management system allows some U.S. dairy products to be imported tariff-free but imposes steep tariffs beyond those quotas to protect domestic producers.
CUSMA, which was negotiated during U.S President Donald Trump’s second term to replace NAFTA, expanded U.S. access but has continued to face criticism from Trump, Greer and U.S. dairy producers.
Greer said expanding Canadian dairy market access was a key concern raised in written public comments.
Prime Minister Mark Carney vowed in the Liberal election platform that he will “keep Canada’s supply management off the table in any negotiations with the U.S.” Ottawa passed legislation in June that effectively enshrined that commitment into law.
Trump recently mused he may let CUSMA expire rather than extend it, while Greer has said all options for the pact’s future — renew, shift to yearly reviews, or pull out entirely — are possible for the U.S.
Carney and Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc have said they have seen no indication the U.S. is considering withdrawing from CUSMA.
Greer told the congressional committees this week that in his view, “whatever (CUSMA’s) value to the United States and even North America, the shortcomings are such that a rubberstamp of the agreement is not in the national interest.”
“USTR will keep the President’s options open, negotiating firmly to resolve the issues identified, but only recommending renewal if resolution can be achieved,” he added.
“In negotiating firmly, USTR will engage with Mexico and Canada to determine which shortcomings can be addressed on a bilateral basis and which require trilateral resolution.”
Greer appeared to give more praise to Mexico for the status of talks than Canada, though he did highlight successful efforts to convince Ottawa to repeal its digital services tax and lift retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods that fall under CUSMA rules.
Trump suspended trade talks with Canada in October and has shown no willingness to restart them since, although he did discuss trade with Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in a private meeting on the sidelines of the FIFA World Cup draw in Washington this month.
In the immediate aftermath of the trade talk suspension, U.S. officials said Canada had been “difficult” in the negotiations.
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