LeBlanc says he’ll meet with Trump’s trade rep to talk about CUSMA review

The minister in charge of Canada-U.S. trade says he will be sitting down with U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade czar in the coming weeks to discuss the looming review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement.

Dominic LeBlanc says he spoke with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the phone after his American counterpart last week said Canadians had barriers that made it difficult to have bilateral trade talks.

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The Trump administration has been causing uncertainty about the trilateral trade pact, known as CUSMA, ahead of a mandatory review taking place this year.

Trump has mused about leaving the agreement and Greer has talked about negotiating separate bilateral trade pacts with America’s closest neighbours.

LeBlanc, who is leading a large trade mission to Mexico this week, says Ottawa and their Mexican counterparts are in agreement that a North American deal involving all three countries is the best way forward.

He says Canada and Mexico do have different trade relationships with the United States but there are many areas of common ground.