NAFTA Ministerial in Washington

NAFTA Ministerial in Washington

This week U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer welcomed Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland and Mexican Secretary of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo to Washington for a ministers meeting to discuss ongoing NAFTA negotiations. Previously, NAFTA parties had been attempting to schedule an eighth round of negotiations. However, this week’s meeting of ministers is seen as a substitute for the next round of talks and a potential indication that a negotiated agreement could be near completion. Many analysts believe that May 1 is a likely deadline for the negotiating process as Mexican presidential elections approach and the timelines for passage through the U.S. Congress narrows.