Canada sends letter to U.S., Mexico calling for renewal of trade agreement

WASHINGTON — Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said he had a positive meeting with his American counterpart in Washington a day after sending a letter to the United States and Mexico recommending that the three countries renew the continental trade pact.

LeBlanc said he presented specific proposals to United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and talked about long-standing issues Americans have raised about Canada.

“We discussed how we can work together on a number of issues that strengthen the competitiveness of the North American economy,” LeBlanc said at the Canadian Embassy on Tuesday following the meeting with Greer.

The letter from LeBlanc to Greer and Mexico’s secretary of economy, Marcelo Ebrard, is a requirement of the mandatory review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, known in Canada as CUSMA.

LeBlanc’s letter pushed for a 16-year renewal of the trade agreement.

“Canadian, American and Mexican farmers, businesses, workers and consumers are counting on the timely completion of this work to provide the certainty and stability that is essential to maintaining the conditions that not only secure their economic futures but allow them to prosper,” the letter said.

The letter added that Canada “is willing to consider any proposal that can be beneficial to all three nations’ long-term prosperity.”

LeBlanc said he had received similar letters from U.S. and Mexican trade officials but would not disclose what they said. At a press conference in Mexico on Tuesday, Ebrard also called for the 16-year renewal.

The continental trade pact has helped to shield Canada and Mexico from the worst effects of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The current 10 per cent U.S. global duty does not apply to goods compliant with CUSMA.

CUSMA was negotiated during the first Trump administration to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement. But Trump has since criticized the trade agreement by calling it irrelevant and saying it may have served its purpose.

The CUSMA review sets up a three-way choice for each country to make in July. They can renew the deal for another 16 years, withdraw from it or signal both non-renewal and non-withdrawal — which would trigger an annual review that could keep negotiations going for up to a decade.

The United States letter to Canada and Mexico has not been made public but Greer’s public comments suggest he’s unlikely to rubber-stamp a renewal. Greer has said he’d be open to two separate bilateral agreements but has noted that aspects of CUSMA work very well.

LeBlanc, who was joined by Canada’s chief trade negotiator Janice Charette, repeatedly said that passing the July deadline does not end the deal — pointing to the ongoing annual review. Experts and industry groups have said if that persists for too long, it could lead to more investment and business insecurity.

LeBlanc said he was optimistic following his meeting with Greer and the Canadian side is focused on the work.

“This trip has not been without some turbulence. We’ve all been in contexts where there’s turbulence — you don’t take your seatbelt off and run up and down the aisle and kick in the cockpit door,” he said. “You remain focused on the work that you need to do, and you come through the turbulence very much focused on the outcome.”

The minister did not share the details of what was discussed behind closed doors but said he brought up Trump’s separate tariffs that have been slamming specific Canadian industries like steel, aluminum, automobiles, lumber and cabinetry.

Trade talks between Washington and Ottawa were frozen last October after Trump was angered by an Ontario-funded advertisement quoting former U.S. president Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs. The relationship thawed in March and LeBlanc said there have been ongoing talks with the United States for months.

But while official CUSMA trade negotiations between Ottawa and Washington have yet to begin, talks between the United States and Mexico have started.

Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday that the United States has separate issues with Canada and Mexico.

“There’s a series of issues, technical issues, that they have with Mexico, they have with us, which is why there’s a bifurcated discussion,” he said.

He said the U.S. has a list of about 30 issues with Canada of “varying technicality.”

Ottawa and Mexico City have both said they want a trilateral North American agreement, and separate talks have also taken place between the two countries.

Charette said they talked with Greer and his U.S. trade team about how successful CUSMA has been for all three countries. She said they pressed “the stability and the certainty and the predictability that that agreement offers, and the importance of trying to get to there as quickly as possible.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 2, 2026.

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press