Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister for trade with the United States, will meet US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer this Tuesday accompanied by chief negotiator Janice Charette. The hastily arranged encounter follows Canada’s exclusion from last week’s bilateral talks between Washington and Mexico on the USMCA review.
The session comes just days after the US and Mexico wrapped their first round of discussions covering automotive origin rules, steel and aluminum trade, and economic security. Canada has yet to begin its own formal negotiations ahead of the July 1 deadline. Without a three-country extension, the pact would shift to yearly reviews stretching until 2036. Greer has already floated the idea that Ottawa might have to swallow certain tariffs if it wants a seat at the table.
The American side is also pushing for stricter auto content requirements and greater access to Canadian markets, particularly dairy. Tensions over provincial alcohol sales rules have added another layer of irritation. Observers expect the Tuesday meeting to feel less like diplomacy and more like an awkward group project where one partner shows up late and discovers the others have already divided the good assignments.
LeBlanc now faces the delicate task of convincing Washington that Canada deserves equal treatment without appearing desperate. Whether the conversation produces concrete progress or simply polite reminders about Canadian liquor laws remains unclear. For now, Ottawa is left wondering how to negotiate a trade deal when the other two parties already started without them and seem perfectly content to keep going.
