Canada’s federal government has formally requested a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) review of the U.S. tariff imposed on solar panels, saying that the 30% charge is illegal and unfair.
In a news release, Global Affairs Canada said that the tariffs have hurt workers in the clean energy sector on both sides of the border. The request for a review under NAFTA's "Chapter 20" provision comes one day after Mexico's president-elect publicized a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump in which he called for a reboot of the talks towards a new three-way continental trade agreement.
The NAFTA renegotiation has been on hold since late spring because of the July 1 Mexican presidential election that will see Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador sworn in this coming December. The U.S. is now gearing up for mid-term congressional and senate elections in November.
Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, Finance Minister Bill Morneau and International Trade Minister Jim Carr are scheduled to travel to Mexico City this week to meet the incoming Mexican leader, a session that comes one week after President Trump mused about separate trade deals with both Canada and Mexico.
Freeland said the solar panel tariff is a violation of NAFTA rules and was imposed even though the United States International Trade Commission determined imports from Canada were not hurting the U.S. economy.
