Trump’s point man on trade floats separate deals with Canada and Mexico

U.S. President Donald Trump’s lead trade negotiator says the administration is considering breaking up the three-way free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, moving toward separate deals instead. 

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Wednesday that the Trump administration is keeping all options on the table for the future of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) as it comes up for renewal in 2026. 

But Greer, who plays a key role in all trade negotiations, including the looming review of CUSMA, is laying out a strong case for separate bilateral deals with the country’s northern and southern neighbours — a move that would end 30 years of North America having a unified free trade agreement.

“Our economic relationship with Canada is very, very different than our economic relationship with Mexico,” Greer told an event held by the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think-tank focused on international affairs. 

“The labour situation’s different. The import-export profile is different. The rule of law is different. So it makes sense to talk about things separately with Canada and Mexico,” he said.

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All three countries must indicate by July 1 of next year whether they want to extend the agreement, renegotiate its terms or let it expire. Greer must provide a report to U.S. Congress 180 days before that deadline — by Jan. 2 — that would signal the administration’s intentions.

Already talking separately to Canada and Mexico

He didn’t drop any hints during Wednesday’s conversation about which way the White House is leaning when it comes to CUSMA. 

“Could it be exited? Yeah, it could be exited. Could it be revised? Yes. Could it be renegotiated? Yes,” Greer said. “All of those things are on the table.”

However, he strongly hinted there was potential for splitting the agreement into separate bilateral deals with Canada and Mexico.

“We’re already talking to them separately,” Greer said. 

“I have not had a meeting this year where I sat with Canada and Mexico in a room, and we sat together and talked about USMCA,” he added, using the U.S. acronym for the agreement. 

Greer’s comments echo remarks made to Politico last week, when he said he discussed the possibility of separate negotiations with the U.S. president just…