Canada, Mexico to work together in face of Trump’s US tariff threats

In a pending review of the 2020 US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, Canada and Mexico have pledged to strengthen ties and coordinate their strategy.

On Thursday, Canada’s Prime Minister met with his Mexican counterpart, President Claudia Sheinbaum, to discuss economic and security ties.

The two leaders stated in a joint press conference that they were committed to expanding trade between their nations and that they were committed to expanding their three-way trade partnership with the US.

Sheinbaum expressed optimism that the two nations would continue to cooperate under the principle of reciprocal “respect.”

She said, “Mexico and Canada will continue to walk together, with mutual respect and the assurance that cooperation will help them overcome any challenge.”

According to Carney, North America is the “economic envy of the world,” in part due to Canada and Mexico’s close cooperation in trade.

He said, “I have full confidence that we can find the adjustments necessary to increase competition and competitiveness in our region, just like I do the president Sheinbaum.”

On Thursday, Sheinbaum and Carney vowed to strike side trade deals with US President Donald Trump in an effort to avoid competing with one another.

Carney remarked, “We will proceed together.”

This week, ahead of a review that will be conducted by each nation for the following year, public consultations on the future of the USMCA began.

In response to Trump’s comments that his northern neighbor should join the US as its 51st state, Canada has recently struggled to renegotiate its existing agreements with Washington.

Trump has also been hostile toward his southern neighbor with an executive order mandating US government agencies to refer to the “Gulf of Mexico” as the “Gulf of America.”

Sheinbaum reportedly responded to concerns about direct US military intervention in Mexico by signing a secret executive order directing the military to attack Mexican drug cartels in August.

Sheinbaum stated at the time, “There won’t be an invasion of Mexico.”

Trump has targeted both nations in his trade war, with 25% tariffs on some Mexican pharmaceuticals and 25% on Canadian steel. According to him, the flow of drugs across Mexican borders and into the US has caused Mexico to pay an additional 25% “fentanyl tariff.”

The US is the world’s top trading partner, with Mexico and Canada accounting for both of its largest and second-largest trading partners, respectively.

In 2024, trade between Mexico and Canada reached a $40.5 billion valuation. Compared to that, Canada’s trade relationship with the US was estimated to be worth $ 924. 4 billion.

A Canadian prime minister’s first bilateral visit to Mexico in eight years is Carney’s, and Canadian officials described ties as excellent but acknowledged that they could be even better.