Donald Trump has refused to renew the North American trade pact he once promoted as his signature achievement, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Instead of committing to another 16 years, the pact will remain active but subject to annual reviews rather than the original six-year intervals.

The deadline for the three countries to jointly decide the pact’s future was Wednesday. Following virtual talks among officials from the US, Mexico, and Canada, the US trade representative’s office confirmed that Washington walked away from renewing the deal on its existing terms, citing persistent US trade deficits with both neighbors.

A senior administration official stated that Trump “chose not to rubber stamp a USMCA renewal without addressing existing issues,” clarifying that the US did not agree to renew the agreement in its current form.

In a statement, US trade representative Jamieson Greer said the US would “continue to engage with Mexico and Canada to address the Agreement’s shortcomings.” Mexico’s economy minister, Marcelo Ebrard, expressed willingness to address US concerns about foreign dependence, stating, “There is no difference that I can identify between Mexico, the United States and Canada that is so big that we cannot resolve it,” according to Reuters.

Trump originally negotiated the USMCA in 2020 during his first term as an updated version of the 1992 North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta). The agreement is set to expire in 2036 if renewed.

Sources