Priyanka Tiwari
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Mexican and Canadian officials have grown increasingly angry with tariff deliberations involving the Trump administration, and say that the lack of precision accompanying what the U.S. seeks makes even the simplest resolution unattainable, which officials from both countries mentioned to Reuters.
After imposing a blanket 25% duty on products from Canada and Mexico earlier this week, Donald Trump announced a 30-day stay of execution for both nations concerning items that fall under the North American trade agreement.
Several weeks ago, Ontario appealed for the US government to withdraw the tariffs. “These on and off tariffs and the surrounding high-level diplomacy is bound to leave almost everyone exasperated. There is no other explaination”, said one Canadian source and three Mexican diplomats who are part of these negotiations.
It’s like “managing an annoyed partner and you have no idea what they’re irritated about”, explained one Mexican diplomat. “What is clear is that there is no clarity on what they actually seek”.
Press secretary for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum told Reuters that they cannot make comments and should refer to Sheinbaum's public statements which were made earlier on. Online, Sheinbaum wrote: “We experienced very good and cordial communications” which honored the “sovereignties” of both nations.
Nothing was received from them in a response to requests made for comments that were sent to the cabinet of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the White House.
Trump justified the tariffs by saying they were to combat the flow of fentanyl as well as immigration, but he and other members of the administration usually broaden the reasoning to include the trade debt the country owes and the need to protect American industries such as car manufacturing and lumber.
While Mexico and Canada face the common problem of frustration, the two countries have used differing language publicly. Sheinbaum has noted that she holds a great deal of respect for Trump as well as the strong collaboration with the United States. Canada has been very open in their condemnation of the pandemonium.
On Thursday, before the announcement of a break by Trump, Trudeau said that Canada will be engaged in a trade war with the United States for "the foreseeable future." U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent referred to Trudeau as "a numbskull."
Trudeau's foreign minister has been blunter still.
"We won't get through this, another psychodrama every 30 days," Foreign Minister Melanie Joly spoke earlier this week to a group of business leaders in Toronto.
She said, “The issue we have faced is that it is unknown what the American president desires.” “I have talked with people in Washington who say, ‘Okay, but in the end, what do you want?’ And the response is, ‘We are almost there.’ There is one decision maker in the system. He is the only one who knows.” Secretary of Commerce in the U.S. Howard Lutnick trivialized the suggestion that he was unaware of President Trump’s interest, calling it “fake news” and “silly” on Thursday during an interview with CNBC. He Trump claimed President Lutnik “calls everybody all the time.” “I talk with him all the time. Don't joke with me. The man knows for certain what he wants. It is clear to us what he wants.” But those from Canada and Mexico noted how vague the requests were and how whether the representatives of the Trump administration in multilateral meetings were able to deliver was equally if not more so, out of control, which was altogether making the conversations very hard. They claimed that the scope is unclear which makes it appear at some point like they are discussing fentanyl, at other times immigration, while sometimes there seems to be focus on the trade deficit.
A different Mexican Authority stated, “The scenarios justifying the tariffs by the U.S. keep changing.” He added, “In order to find a solution, one has to understand the problem first.”
