Carney Looks to Bolster Canada-Mexico Relations as U.S. Trade Concerns Loom
Prime Minister Mark Carney is traveling to Mexico City on Thursday for a two-day visit aimed at revitalising Canada’s relationship with Mexico and coordinating efforts ahead of critical trade discussions with the United States.
He is scheduled to meet with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum for wide-ranging talks on key issues, including trade, security, and health.
“This is a very important relationship for Canada,” Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday.
This trip will be the first official bilateral visit to Mexico by a Canadian prime minister in eight years. While Canadian officials described the relationship as strong, they acknowledged it has lacked recent high-level attention.
“Highest level engagements have been few and far between, so this is an opportunity for us to reaffirm that leader-level engagement,”one official noted.
During the visit, Carney and Sheinbaum will share a working lunch and are expected to formalise a comprehensive strategic partnership, along with initiatives to deepen security cooperation.
Although Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. updated their trilateral trade agreement in 2018, unity among the three has weakened, particularly after U.S. President Donald Trump introduced tariffs. Relations between Canada and Mexico were further strained last year when prominent Canadian lawmakers suggested pursuing a separate trade agreement with Washington.
Brian Clow, a former advisor to ex-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on North American policy, emphasised the importance of communication between the two countries.
“It’s not in either country’s interest to be fighting each other when they have one single common goal, which is to hold off Donald Trump and his trade threats,” he said.
Canada’s efforts to renegotiate aspects of its economic and defence relationship with the U.S. have not progressed significantly, reinforcing the need to strengthen ties with Mexico.
With a review of the North American trade pact scheduled for next year, Carney has highlighted this as a key focus.
“That is the bigger trading relations(hip) and the focus for the larger trading relationship shifts to there,” he said on September 5.
Sebastian Vallejo Vera, a political science professor at Western University in Ontario, stressed the value of a shared strategy between Canada and Mexico.
“So eventually, when they go out for trade talks again … they are not ganging up on the United States, but definitely not being pitted one against the other, so that they can negotiate from a better position,”he explained.
Carney has also underscored the importance of expanding Canada’s trade beyond its dominant partner. In 2024, trade in goods between Canada and Mexico reached only C$55.4 billion, compared to C$924.4 billion with the U.S.
“Wherever there is untapped potential, in terms of trade diversification … we need to capitalise on it, and Mexico is just a prime example,” a Canadian official said.
