Canada, Mexico Leaders Meet Without Trump for Trade Review
Carney and Sheinbaum Plan to Announce a Stronger Economic Partnership
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The leaders of Canada and Mexico will meet Sept. 18 and pledge to bolster their economic and security ties ahead of a contentious review of theUnited States-Mexico-Canada Agreementnext year.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will arrive in Mexico City for talks with President Claudia Sheinbaum, and the two leaders will hold a joint news conference later in the day. The Canadian ministers responsible for foreign affairs and U.S. trade will also be on the trip to meet their counterparts.
They plan to announce a stronger economic partnership that will include a framework for leaders and key ministers to meet frequently, said Canadian government officials in a briefing. They’ll talk about the continental trade deal and the FIFA World Cup the three North American nations are hosting next year, according to another person familiar with the matter.
The meetings will also focus on border security issues such as the trafficking of drugs and firearms, as well as strategies for combating organized crime groups, the officials said.
The trip is expected to produce a declaration on boosting cooperation in areas such as energy, security, transportation and trade, according to a person familiar with the talks. It will likely include pledges to increase trade of autos and parts.
Nearly a dozen Canadian executives and business leaders are joining Carney’s delegation, including Bank of Nova Scotia’s Scott Thomson, TC Energy Corp.’s Francois Poirier, Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd.’s Keith Creel and ATCO Ltd.’s Nancy Southern.
The U.S.’s neighbors share a common goal in trying to convince President Donald Trump to reduce tariffs on strategic sectors such as steel and autos. But Carney and Sheinbaum will also be trying to build a stronger relationship after a series of recent disputes between their countries.
“Carney comes to strengthen the Mexico-Canada relationship,” Sheinbaum said at a news conference early Sept. 18, adding that they will discuss ways to strengthen direct trade via ports, rather than highways or trains that run through the U.S.
The visit is especially important ahead of trade talks that look “increasingly fraught,” said Brian Clow, who was a senior aide to former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“Both Canada and Mexico have reason to distrust the other,” he said. “Both have felt betrayed by each other recently.”
Trudeau was blindsided in 2018 when Mexico began negotiating directly with the Trump administration, effectively cutting Canada out of what had been trilateral talks on what became the USMCA. Trump later used his Mexico deal to try to squeeze concessions out of Canada, Clow said.
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Mexican officials were also outraged last fall when some Canadian politicians slammed Mexico’s trade relationship with China and argued Trump should cut a two-way deal directly with Canada instead. Doug Ford, the leader of Canada’s most populous province, said at one point that comparing Canada to Mexico is “the most insulting thing I have ever heard.”
Such comments “significantly damaged Mexico’s trust in its Canadian counterparts and greatly affected coordination and the possibility of creating a shared agenda and a common strategy,” said Diego Marroquín, a fellow at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“This visit is part of Canada’s strategy, understanding that Canada has more leverage in trade negotiations with the United States if it goes hand in hand with Mexico than if it goes alone,” he said.
The visit comes just days after Mexico said it’s planning to impose tariffs of as much as 50% on cars, auto parts, steel and other products it imports from China and several Asian exporters. It’s a decision likely to be welcomed by Carney, as Canada hiked its own tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles to 100% last year and added levies on Chinese steel and aluminum.
Trade Talks
Although the USMCA keeps Canada and Mexico in a privileged position over other nations amid the trade war unleashed by Trump, neither Carney nor Sheinbaum have managed to reduce the tariffs imposed on their nations by the U.S.
Trump put tariffs of 35% on Canada and 25% on Mexico related to fentanyl trafficking and illegal migration into the U.S., although many goods are exempt due to the trade pact.
Over the summer, both sides have explored how Canadian companies and investors can help build infrastructure in Mexico that facilitates bilateral trade, including ports and rail, according to a person with knowledge of the talks. Strengthening energy security, including conventional and renewable power, was also discussed.
Sheinbaum has said Carney will spend most of the day on Sept. 18 at the National Palace, holding several meetings as both countries have significant trade under the USMCA and Canada has important investments in Mexico in mining, natural gas and railways.
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During the two-day trip, Carney will meet with diplomats and business leaders and attend an event to highlight Canadian wheat deliveries by rail to Mexico.
Carney’s visit is the first bilateral meeting for a Canadian prime minister in Mexico since Trudeau went to see Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto in 2017. He returned to Mexico in 2023 for the “Three Amigos” summit with Joe Biden and Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
In June, Carney invited Sheinbaum to the Group of Seven leaders summit he hosted in Kananaskis, Alberta. The Mexican leader attended with the intention of meeting with Trump, but the U.S. president left before she arrived due to the Israel-Iran conflict.
