by WorldTribune Staff, November 11, 2016
Donald Trump’s stunning victory in the Nov. 8 presidential election was a shock to the system of the leaders of the U.S.’s two North American neighbors.
Scrambling to come to grips with Trump’s historic win, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto both said they were ready to discuss changes to NAFTA with Trump, who has vowed to scrap his predecessors’ toxic trade policies.
“I think it’s important that we be open to talking about trade deals,” Trudeau told reporters on Nov. 10.
“If the Americans want to talk about NAFTA, I’m more than happy to talk about it,” he said, adding that it was important to periodically reassess trade deals to ensure that they continue to be of benefit to Canadians.
Bilateral trade crossing the U.S.-Canadian border amounts to $1.8 billion daily.
Mexico said it is willing to “modernize” NAFTA. Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu on Nov. 9 said “we are willing to talk about this with the new (Trump) government and with Canada as well.”
Nieto said that he and Trump had agreed to meet, possibly before the president-elect’s inauguration in January.
Two-way trade in goods between Mexico and the United States totaled $531 billion in 2015.