Merve Gül Aydoğan Ağlarcı
03 June 2026•Update: 03 June 2026
Canada's Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Tuesday that he is "eternally optimistic" about extending the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) for another 16 years following talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington, DC.
Describing the meeting as productive, LeBlanc told reporters during a news conference that Canadian and US officials reviewed progress made in recent weeks on several trade issues.
"We had a positive meeting with Ambassador Greer, Janice Charette, and I and a number of senior officials from the US Trade Representative's office," he said.
Noting that they had addressed the progress made "over the last number of weeks on a series of technical issues," LeBlanc added that the Canadian side "presented a number of specific proposals to Ambassador Greer that we think are good in the broader context of the North American economy and respond to some longstanding issues that the United States has raised with us."
LeBlanc said he also discussed a letter sent to his American and Mexican counterparts confirming Canada's willingness to extend the trade pact.
"I also had the opportunity to discuss with Ambassador Greer the letter that I sent to my American and Mexican counterparts yesterday, where I confirmed, as you know, that Canada would be ready to extend the CUSMA agreement by 16 years," he said.
Noting that Canada also raised concerns about tariffs affecting "critical" sectors, LeBlanc said officials discussed issues related to automobiles, steel, aluminum, and softwood lumber.
Asked whether securing a 16-year extension is achievable, LeBlanc replied: "I'm eternally optimistic."
"I think it's in the economic interest of North America to commit to that trilateral framework for another 16 years," he said.
LeBlanc acknowledged that significant work remains ahead of a July 1 milestone but said he remains hopeful about the outcome of the talks.
"I remain optimistic about the work that we can do with the Americans, but July 1 is a date where our trading partners will have something to say about that, and we have a lot of work to do between now and July 1," he said.
Canada is also holding discussions with Mexico as part of the process, according to LeBlanc.
"I remain optimistic that there will be a conclusion by all three parties that the economic interest of North America is served by committing to what Ambassador Greer has previously publicly referred to as the load-bearing walls of their trade relationship with Canada and Mexico," he said.
