Canada and Mexico will intensify their efforts to convince President Donald Trump that their measures to improve border security and reduce fentanyl trafficking have worked ahead of the March 4th deadline.
Canada and Mexico both took steps to improve border security. This has bought them a respite of about a month from tariffs which could have wreaked havoc on the highly integrated North American economies.
Dan Ujczo is a U.S.-Canada trade lawyer who specializes in negotiations.
Trump said that even if this happens, he will continue to threaten tariffs until it is clear the border measures have stopped the fentanyl and migrant flows.
Ujczo said that there is progress being made in the area of security. He is a senior attorney with Thompson Hine, based in Columbus, Ohio. It’s overly hopeful to believe that these tariffs will be completely rescinded.
The White House, U.S. Trade Representative’s office, and Commerce Department have not responded to requests for comments on the expected negotiations this week, ahead of the deadline of March 4, to implement tariffs. These would apply to more than $918 billion of U.S. imported goods from both countries, ranging from energy to autos.
Trump has piled on tariffs since his initial threat of 25% tariffs and the imposition of a duty of 10% on all Chinese imports. This could complicate border negotiations.
The tariffs will be raised to 25% and the exemptions granted for Canada and Mexico – the two largest suppliers of metals in the U.S. – will be revoked. These steep increases will also affect hundreds of downstream products made from steel. They are set to go into effect on March 12, a week following the border tariffs.
Trump also wants to impose a 25% tariff on autos, pharmaceuticals, and semiconductors imports. He has also ordered “reciprocal tariffs” to match the tariff rates and trade barriers in other countries.
Ujczo said that the threat of these tariffs might lead to an early renegotiation of the U.S., Mexico, and Canada agreement on trade due in 2026.
Trump signed into law the USMCA in 2020, after renegotiating 1994’s North American Free Trade Agreement. However, he has expressed increasing dissatisfaction over auto imports from Mexico and Canada.
Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard stated on Thursday that they had a “constructive dialogue” during their meeting with Trump’s top officials in the trade department, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and White House Economic Advisor Kevin Hassett, as well as Jamieson Greer, nominee for U.S. Representative to the World Trade Organization.
Ebrard stated in a blog post on X, that “joint working” on U.S. Trade matters will begin on Monday. Mexico has started deploying up to 10,000 National Guard soldiers to its northern border as part of an agreement in which Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also asked the U.S. for help to stop the flow of firearms into Mexico.
Kevin Brosseau, a senior intelligence official, was appointed to the position by Canada in early April. Ottawa has also reclassified the drug cartels into terrorist entities and deployed drones and helicopters along the northern U.S. Border.
In response to Trump’s tariff threats, the Canadian government increased border security spending by C$1.3 billion (913 million dollars) in December. Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister, has been in constant contact with Trump about border issues. This includes a call on Saturday that discussed joint efforts to reduce fentanyl traffic.
He has threatened retaliatory tariffs on C$155 billion ($107 billion) of U.S. imports, including American beer, wine, bourbon, and Florida orange juice, but said last week that Canada is “going to do the work” to ensure that tariffs are not imposed.
White House officials claim that Canada, Mexico, and China are the conduits of shipments of fentanyl precursor chemicals and small packages into the U.S. which are not often examined.
The suspension of the “de minimis exemption” for packages under $800 in value from the three countries is a major obstacle to slowing down these shipments. This was because there were no screening procedures in place for the millions and millions of low-value express packages arriving daily at U.S. Airports.
When the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency can close the de minimis gap again is unclear. Trump’s first fentanyl order and border tariffs directed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Nuem to regularly report to Trump and Congress on the crisis.
