Mexican Govt. Says That Canceling Neoliberal NAFTA Would Be 'Lost Opportunity'

As the future of the controversial North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) hangs in the balance after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his intention to renogotiate the treaty, Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray has expressed dismay at the possibility of its cancelation, calling it a “lost opportunity” for Mexico, the United States, and Canada, according to Latin American Herald Tribune.

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The treaty's cancelation would be “above all, a lost opportunity ... (because) NAFTA is good for the three economies, although there is no doubt it can be improved,” Videgaray said to reporters.

U.S. President Donald Trump formally notified Congress last Thursday of his intentions to renegotiate the 23-year-old neoliberal trade pact with Canada and Mexico. Renegotiation of NAFTA was a centerpiece of Trump's presidential campaign, during which he called the treaty a “disaster” that has resulted in the loss of U.S. manufacturing jobs.

“We would have a problem in the near term,” but as a region “we would lose the opportunity to create what might be the most competitive and best growth in recent decades,” he said.

While the agreement has been praised by some for increasing trade and investment in Mexico's agriculture and manufacturing sectors, the oft cited benefits of free trade are not experienced by the majority. According to the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Mexican poverty has risen since the neoliberal deal's implementation in 1994. Nearly 5 million family farmers were displaced, propelling Mexico's poor toward migration to the United States — crucial drivers of social instability and unrest.

Videgaray indicated that Mexico would be ready for the impending renegotiations of the treaty, saying they have “one of the best negotiating teams in the world.”

When U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer sent a letter to U.S. congressional leaders Thursday, notifying them of the Trump administration´s intention to “modernize” NAFTA, the proposal entered a 90-day consultation period.

Talks to renegotiate are expected to begin after August 16th of this year.

The renegotiation of NAFTA between Mexico, the United States, and Canada also coincides with ongoing negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, which will expand free-trade relations between 11 nations. The deal does not include the U.S. following their recent withdrawal.