WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th January, 2020) The United States looks forward to Canada's ratification of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement on Thursday after the Senate approved the trilateral trade deal.
"Today, the United States Senate passed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, also known as the USMCA, bringing us one step closer to fulfilling President Trump's promise to modernize and update trade agreements," Pompeo said. "Mexico has ratified the USMCA, and we now look forward to the Canadian Parliament's consideration of this agreement. The USMCA will promote prosperity through reciprocal, balanced, and fair trade while encouraging robust economic engagement in our three nations."
The US Senate voted on Thursday to approve the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and send it to President Donald Trump for signing. The agreement has already been approved by the US House and by Mexico's government.
The deal, which replaces the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), was signed by the three countries on November 30, 2018. The trilateral pact updates rules for participants' access to the three countries' domestic markets, labor legislation and intellectual property protection mechanisms.
The Mexican Senate passed the deal last month, while Canada's Parliament is expected to vote to ratify the USMCA after it returns to session on January 27.
The USMCA came into being as a result of US President Trump demanding to re-negotiate NAFTA, a pact signed in 1993 that the president had repeatedly called a "disaster" for the United States.
