'Hammer, hammer, hammer': Canada lobbies US before NAFTA talks

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In the baking Ohio heat Canada's trade minister is trying to save NAFTA, one encounter at a time.

Francois-Philippe Champagne is in Cincinnati for a meeting-packed June day as part of a concerted Canadian outreach campaign ahead of talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

US President Donald Trump describes the 1994 pact as a disaster and has threatened to walk away from it.

Canadian Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne listens to a question during a joint press conference held on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 23rd Ministers responsible for Trade Meeting in Hanoi on May 21, 2017. /VCG Photo

Concerned that any moves to abandon NAFTA or curb trade could cost thousands of jobs, the Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wants to remind Americans how important bilateral trade is while seeking allies to press the Canadian cause if threats emerge.

Since Trump's inauguration, Canadian politicians and officials have made almost 160 trips, meeting 14 cabinet members, almost 200 lawmakers and more than 40 state governors and lieutenant governors.

Mexico, the pact's third partner, has been leading a similar campaign.

"We have to hammer, hammer, hammer away at this and when we're exhausted, hammer again," said one person involved in the Canadian effort.

Champagne's message is simple: "We are your largest client."

Every day some 400,000 people and 2.4 billion Canadian dollars (1.82 billion US dollars) worth of trade cross the border. Crimping that flow will hurt both nations, says Ottawa.

Champagne, who flew in late the night before, starts his day at Cincinnati's members-only Queen City Club, where he hosts a breakfast with a dozen local leaders.

"Sometimes as friends and neighbors we take each other for granted," he tells the group. "Let's make sure we don't put things in place that would disrupt supply chains."

The outreach effort is not intended to convey a threat, says David MacNaughton, Canada's ambassador to Washington.

But he adds: "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that at some point, if they keep doing things that harm Canadian companies, that it's going to be difficult for us to resist doing the same."

(Source: Reuters)

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