The United States, Canada, and Mexico have formally launched a review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the trilateral trade deal that replaced NAFTA when it took effect on July 1, 2020. The review is mandatory under the agreement’s own terms, triggered by a built-in six-year checkpoint set for July 1, 2026.
Trump has made his position clear: he is not looking to renew the USMCA without significant concessions from both neighbors.
What Trump actually wants
The administration’s demands are specific. The US wants expanded access to Canada’s dairy market, changes to how alcohol trade is regulated, tougher enforcement of labor provisions, revised automotive rules of origin, and steps to narrow trade deficits with Mexico.
The backdrop makes this harder. Tariff disputes between the US and its two neighbors are already ongoing, and the research shows that negotiations are proceeding primarily on a bilateral basis rather than as a unified three-way conversation.
