Canada Ratifies USMCA Trade Agreement

Canada completes the North American cycle with their ratification of the USMCA to replace NAFTA. Mexico and the U.S. ratified the new trade agreement last year and January respectively.  The Canadian parliament did so yesterday.

CANADA – Canada on Friday formally approved the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), taking the last legislative step to implementation of the deal to replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

The trade deal, ratified by the Mexican legislature last June and by Congress in January, was formally ratified by the Canadian Senate Friday, and shortly thereafter received royal assent, the Canadian governor general’s approval.

The deal was passed through the legislature before Parliament shut down for five weeks in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

[…] With royal assent, the USMCA has cleared its last continental legislative hurdle to become the law of the land in all three signatory countries.

Canadian approval kicks off a three-month period for all three signatory countries to agree on implementation regulations, including naming each country’s representatives for the conflict resolution mechanism. (link)

Washington, DC – United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer today commented on the Canadian Parliament’s approval of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA):

“Now that the USMCA has been approved by all three countries, an historic new chapter for North American trade has begun.  This landmark achievement would not be possible without President Trump’s leadership and determination to strengthen our economy, and the hard work of our negotiating partners in Canada and Mexico.  USMCA is the gold standard by which all future trade agreements will be judged, and citizens of all three countries will benefit for years to come.”

Background:

USMCA was signed into law by President Donald J. Trump on January 29, 2020, after it received overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress.  The President was elected on replacing NAFTA with an agreement that puts American workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses first. He achieved this goal with the USMCA, an agreement that will bring manufacturing jobs back, help service industry workers, and raise wages.

All three countries are working together closely on implementation in advance of the Agreement’s entry into force. (link)