Canada Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland wears t-shirt with NAFTA message ahead of talks
Ottawa, Sept 19 (IBNS): Ahead of the resumption of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) talks in Washington, the capital of the US, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland was spotted with a t-shirt which had a message for the pact, media reports said.
As she was spotted at the airport while leaving for the US, Freeland was seen wearing a white t-shirt with line "Keep Calm and Negotiate NAFTA" written on its back.
In an interaction with CTV News, Freeland said: "The shirt is a Christmas gift my children gave to me."
Freeland even told the media that she hopes the t-shirt would be lucky for the NAFTA talks.
Freeland will resume the talks to sign a renewed NAFTA in Washington, the capital city of the United States, on Wednesday.
The talks will resume to make a deal ahead of Sept 30, a deadline which was triggered by US President Donald Trump.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Freeland said as she has been quoted by CTV News, "This is a very intensive phase of the negotiations."
"A lot of people are engaged in this effort and we’re talking a lot on the phone and by e-mail but there are some conversations that it’s better to have face to face. I think it’s absolutely the right thing for us to meet."
In early September, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had cleared that the Liberals won't compromise on culture and dispute resolution during the talks over NAFTA.
Trudeau said Canada won't sign a new deal if it does not include a dispute resolution mechanism and exemptions from cultural industries.
However, meetings were held between Freeland and the US officials to sign a deal.
NAFTA is an agreement which came into force from January 1994 by Canada, Mexico and United States creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America.
Trump had earlier also alleged that the US faced severe losses in the trade pact with Canada and Mexico.
Image: Screen grab from CTV News
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