Trudeau and Pena Nieto Express Commitment to 'Win-Win' NAFTA Deal

The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been holding talks with the Mexican President Pena Nieto, just a day after meeting U.S. President Donald Trump.

 Trump floated the idea of a bilateral trade deal excluding Mexico during their discussions.

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The leaders of Mexico and Canada pledged to work toward a renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA at their meeting in Mexico City.

Both men said they were committed to a “win-win-win” deal.

The U.S. is now demanding the addition of a a so-called “sunset clause” to NAFTA that would force negotiations of the US$1 trillion pact every five years.

Speaking at a news conference, Trudeau said, “We will not be walking away from the table based on the proposals put forward.”

While Pena Nieto hinted at a potential alternaive, “I think that Canada and Mexico share that the NAFTA agreement is a good mechanism, not the only one, but it is a good mechanism to boost the development of the region.”

Differences between the nations have appeared unbridgeable in the last three NAFTA meetings, and the fourth round arrives amid major tensions between the three sides.

Trudeau has hinted that he prefers reviving NAFTA, but the prime minister also expressed openness towards a new U.S.-Canada deal.

Still, Canada and Mexico both appear unwilling to submit to all of the White House's demands, which include the elimination of the dispute settlement mechanism, the shortening of the treaty to five years per renewal, and a change to products requiring a tariff.

Mexico, in turn, also seems to realize — and even accept — that NAFTA could be over for them.

"Mexico is much bigger than NAFTA," the Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray told the Mexican Senate on Tuesday. "We have to be prepared for the different scenarios that could come out of this negotiation."

While the Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo added that Mexico has advanced to a point where it can live without the deal.

NAFTA "no longer has the value it once had in terms of market access," he said, explaining that tariffs have fallen worldwide.

Trudeau’s trip to Mexico also saw him visit the Red Cross headquarters in Mexico City where work has been underway to help earthquake victims.

He met volunteers and the president of the aid organization in Mexico, Fernando Suniaga.

Canada donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the relief effort.

Trudeau loaded boxes of food to be sent to September's quake victims in Chiapas and Oaxaca.