Ontario Premier Calls for Mexico’s Exit from North American Trade Pact

Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Tuesday called for Mexico’s potential exclusion from the North American trade agreement, suggesting a return to bilateral trade arrangements between Canada and the United States.

Ford proposed the significant shift in regional trade relations amid growing concerns over Chinese-owned automotive facilities in Mexico, which he characterized as a “backdoor” for Chinese products into North American markets.

Free trade needs to be fair. Since signing on to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, Mexico has allowed itself to become a backdoor for Chinese cars, auto parts and other products into Canadian and American markets, putting Canadian and American workers’ livelihoods at…

— Doug Ford (@fordnation) November 12, 2024

“Free trade needs to be fair,” Ford told reporters at a news conference in Toronto. He urged Mexico to match Canadian and American tariffs on Chinese imports, warning that failure to do so should result in Mexico’s exclusion from access to North American markets.

The proposal comes as the trilateral trade agreement, known as CUSMA in Canada, approaches its mandatory review in 2026. The pact will expire after a decade without revision.

Ottawa, however, has not aligned with Ford’s position. A spokesperson for Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland told CBC that Ottawa will not allow Canada to become an entry point for Chinese state-backed products that could undermine Canadian employment and emphasized that Canada has imposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, steel, and aluminum.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, while not directly addressing Ford’s proposal, emphasized broader concerns about Chinese trade practices. “We will continue to work with partners like the United States, and hopefully Mexico as well,” Trudeau said, focusing on protecting jobs with higher environmental and labor standards.

Major corporations operating across the three nations are expected to oppose any attempt to exclude Mexico from the agreement, according to trade experts familiar with the matter.

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