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US President Donald Trump said he has little interest in updating the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), arguing that the trade deal matters far more to America’s neighbours than to Washington. His remarks came as Canada prepared to send senior trade officials to Washington this week in an effort to ease mounting trade tensions triggered by fresh US tariffs.
Speaking to Fox News, Trump was asked whether he planned to renegotiate the USMCA. His response was blunt.
“I don’t care. I mean, I don’t really want to. I’d rather be independent,” Trump said.
He went on to claim that Canada and Mexico are far more dependent on the US economy than the other way around.
“Mexico and Canada need us. We don’t need them. The deal is important for them. It’s not important for us,” he said.
Trump doubles down on tariff strategy
Trump’s comments come weeks after his administration declined to extend the USMCA during its scheduled six-year review on July 1. That decision has put the trade agreement on a path that could eventually see it lapse unless the three countries agree on changes over the coming years.
Even as negotiations continue, Trump’s administration has increasingly relied on tariffs rather than trade concessions.
The US has imposed a 25 per cent tariff on vehicles made in Canada and Mexico and a 50 per cent duty on steel and aluminium imports from both countries, citing national security concerns. Those measures effectively weaken some of the duty-free benefits created under the USMCA.
Trump defended the tariffs, saying they are helping bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States.
Pointing to Toyota’s recent decision to invest $3.6 billion in expanding truck production in Texas, he said companies are choosing to manufacture in the US to avoid paying tariffs.
“We’re building more car plants than at any time in our history,” Trump said, adding that automakers face no tariffs if they produce their vehicles in America.
Canada heads to Washington
Trump’s remarks came as Canada confirmed that Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc will travel to Washington later this week for talks with senior US officials.
LeBlanc will be accompanied by Canada’s chief negotiator to the United States, Janice Charette. The meetings will be the first in-person discussions since Washington announced another round of tariffs targeting about $20 billion worth of Canadian exports.
The latest duties cover products including beer, dairy items, plywood and hockey sticks. The Trump administration says the move is a response to Canada’s retaliatory measures against earlier US tariffs, restrictions on American liquor sales in some provinces and longstanding disputes over access to Canada’s protected dairy market.
Following the tariff announcement, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he and Trump had agreed to step up trade negotiations.
USMCA talks remain difficult
While Canada prepares for another round of discussions, negotiations with Mexico have also proven challenging.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer recently held a third round of talks with Mexican officials to explore possible changes to the trade agreement. One of the biggest sticking points remains stricter regional content rules for automobiles, a key demand from the Trump administration.
The latest tariffs have also eroded the competitive advantage previously enjoyed by Canadian and Mexican manufacturers, placing them closer to exporters from countries such as Japan, South Korea and members of the European Union.
Unions urge cooperation
The growing trade dispute has also sparked concern among labour groups.
The United Steelworkers and the International Association of Machinists jointly urged the Trump administration to reconsider the new tariffs and instead work more closely with Canada to address what they described as unfair trade practices by China.
The unions argued that the US and Canada have built decades of economic integration and should focus on strengthening that partnership instead of adding new trade barriers.
Trump’s latest comments, however, suggest his administration remains committed to using tariffs as its primary trade policy tool, even if it raises fresh uncertainty over the future of North America’s biggest trade agreement.
With inputs from agencies.
