Trump signs USMCA trade deal with Mexico and Canada at G20: ‘It’s been long and hard’

‘Battles sometimes make great friendships,’ the president says at official signing ceremony

Donald Trump and the leaders of Canada and Mexico have signed a "groundbreaking" revised North American trade deal at the G20 summit in Argentina, calling it “groundbreaking” during an official signing ceremony.

The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement — otherwise known as USMCA — is expected to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement so long as each country’s legislature votes to support it, including the newly-Democratic US House of Representatives. On Friday, Mr Trump suggested he does not expect much push back from legislators on the deal, while celebrating the “great friendships” he says it has made between the three world leaders.

“This has been a battle and battles sometimes make great friendships so it’s really terrific,” he said. “With our signatures today we will formally declare the intention of our three countries to replace NAFTA with the USMCA.”

He added, “We have worked hard on this agreement … It’s been long and hard and we have taken a lot of barbs and a little abuse and we got there, it’s great for all of our countries."

The three leaders signed the pact despite remaining tensions surrounding steel and aluminium tariffs the US has imposed on the other countries involved in the agreement.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there was still work to be done on the deal, calling on the US president to continue negotiations on the tariffs after both countries saw plant closures and massive layoffs announced by General Motors — a move he described as a “heavy blow” for the US and Canada.

“Donald, it’s all the more reason why we need to keep working to remove the tariffs on steel and aluminium between our two countries,” he said.

However, it remains unclear whether Mr Trump is willing to budge on the tariffs. Speaking with reporters shortly after the signing ceremony, US trade representative Robert Lighthizer said “the steel and aluminium tariffs do continue”.

He added, “We want an agreement that’s fair to Mexico and fair to Canada but maintains the integrity of the president’s steel and aluminium programs.”

Mr Trump suggested Friday he would work with Congress to ensure the USMCA deal is approved in its current form.

“I look forward to working with members of Congress and other USMCA partners and I have to say it has been so well reviewed I don’t expect to have very much of a problem to ensure the complete implementation of our agreement,“ he said.

The signing was one of Mr Trump’s first appearances at the annual G20 summit, in which the president will spend 48-hours meeting with world leaders and discussing some of their most pressing concerns amid bilateral meetings.

Mr Trump was also expected to discuss trade negotiations with Chinese President Xi JinPing during a Saturday dinner, though it remains unclear whether those talks could lead to a calming of tensions as the two nations continue to place tariffs against each other.