U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer says there is a gap between the Canada and U.S. administrations’ trade philosophies.
Greer made the comments at a U.S. House Ways and Means Committee hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade agenda on Wednesday.
“They’ve done this, but overall they’ve indicated that they want to be trading more, they want to have more trade agreements with more countries,” Greer said, when asked whether Canada is taking the same steps as Mexico to better align with U.S. trade policy, specifically when it comes to rules of origin.
“They’re doubling down on globalization when we’re trying to correct for the problems of globalization,” he added. “So those are two models that don’t fit together very well.”
Greer said he’s raised his concerns with Canadian officials during his “regular contact” with them.
The trilateral trade deal between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, known as CUSMA, is imminently up for review by July 1. At that point, officials can decide to renew the deal for a 16-year period, or to agree to an annual review process.
Speaking to the House Ways and Means Committee, Greer repeated a stance he’s laid out before, that the U.S. doesn’t “want to rubber-stamp it.”
Speaking to a Washington, D.C.-based think tank earlier this month, he said while it’s unlikely the U.S. administration will hash out all of its trade issues with Canada and Mexico by July 1, he’s optimistic they’ll be resolved as soon as possible.
More to come.
