“We prefer, in any event, to abandon the treaty than have a bad negotiation of the treaty,
and in this we have been clear publicly and with the government of the United States.”
In an interview Thursday on Radio Fórmula, Mr. Videgaray described the call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Peña Nieto as “cordial.” The Mexican president told Mr. Trump
that he shared the Americans’ desire to begin trade negotiations as soon as possible, but he also emphasized that Mexico was “looking for a negotiation that is good for Mexico, a win-win,” Mr. Videgaray said.
But on Wednesday, the suggestion from the White House
that Mr. Trump was finalizing an executive order to begin the process of withdrawing the United States from Nafta revealed a different, more experienced Mexico: one learning to live with what it considers Mr. Trump’s bluster and stagecraft, and not inclined to react publicly too quickly.
Antonio Garza, a former United States ambassador to Mexico, called Mr. Trump’s possible executive order “hardball,” adding, “It’s probably not the way to deal with a counterparty
that is both a longtime trading partner and critical to so many security, immigration and counterterrorism initiatives.”
Some speculated that Mr. Trump was trying to look tough to appeal to his voting base, particularly
considering his mixed record in achieving his goals as the 100-day mark of his term approaches.
And later that night, Mr. Trump issued a statement saying
that he was not seeking to withdraw from Nafta, but instead “to bring Nafta up-to-date through renegotiation.”
Mr. Peña Nieto then issued a brief statement of his own, saying he, Mr. Trump
and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada had a “shared objective to modernize” the trade agreement.
