During the presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly assailed NAFTA, which went into effect on Jan. 1, 1994, greatly easing trade barriers between the United States, Mexico and Canada. The trade deal, Trump charged, had caused the loss of U.S. jobs to Mexico and the closure of manufacturing plants in the United States. Many here dismissed Trump’s latest Twitter barrage as a negotiating ploy in advance of a second round of NAFTA talks, which are scheduled to take place in Mexico City on Sept. 1-5. In another Sunday morning Twitter message, Trump labeled Mexico “one of the highest crime Nations in the world,” adding: “we must have THE WALL. The two nations must work jointly to reduce criminal activity, Mexico City said.

Source: Los Angeles Times August 28, 2017 02:15 UTC