Trudeau and Trump discuss speeding up NAFTA talks in meeting at G7

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed accelerating NAFTA talksduring a bilateral meeting at the G7 summit of Friday.

"The prime minister and the president had a very positive, productive meeting and it lasted longer than originally scheduled,"a senior government official, speaking on background, told reporters assembled at the G7 summit Friday.

"They did discuss NAFTA at length and they discussed the future of NAFTA, and I would say they also talked about accelerating the talks."

The reportedly positive tone of the leaders' one-on-onemeeting stood in stark contrast to aweekof increasingly testy public statements by Trump, followingCanada's announcement last week that it would impose $16.6 billion intariffsagainst U.S. products on July 1 in retaliation for U.S. tariffs on Canadiansteel and aluminum.

But twosources with direct knowledge of the situation toldCBCNews that Canada has heard this kind of positive rhetoric from Trump before without seeing results at theNAFTAnegotiating table.

One source described Friday's meeting as a "frank" airing of grievances in a "non-emotional setting," adding that Trump appeared surprised that Canada hadresponded so vehemently to the U.S. tariffs.

Trudeau sits down with Trump

6 years ago

Duration 1:55

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Donald Trump held a bilateral meeting on the edges of the G7 Summit in La Malbaie Quebec

Before departing Washingtonforthe leaders' summit Friday, Trump took aim at Trudeau and at Canada's supply management system for dairy products, which includes high tariffs on U.S. imports, in comments to U.S. reporters and in a series of tweets.

But in brief remarks toreporters before their bilateral meeting Friday afternoon, Trump seemed tolightenthe mood, cracking a joke about Canada dropping alltariffs and claiming that relations between the two countries were perhaps better than they had ever been.

SpeakingFridayafter the meeting with Trudeau, Trump said hehada positive meeting with the Canadians during which NAFTAwas theprincipal topic of discussion.

"Wehad a very positive meeting a little while ago onNAFTA.So this is turning out to be an interesting day.But we had a very, very good meeting onNAFTAwith Justin and his representatives," Trump said.

Trump's only other bilateral meeting at the G7summitFridaywas with French President EmmanuelMacron. Like Trudeau, Trump has sparred publiclywith MacrononTwitter over what the U.S. president calls unfair trade deals that impoverish Americaninterests to the benefit of its allies.

Macron, who ftedTrump in France last year with a lavish state visit in his honour, has been called a "Trump whisperer" but he hasn't shied away from taking on Trump. Macron called the recent U.S. move to impose steel and aluminum tariffs on EU allies "illegal and a mistake."

But on the tariff file, the leaders were sounding a more positive note Friday.

"We had a very direct and open discussion," Macron told reportersFridayof his one-on-one with Trump."And I saw the willingness on all the sides to find agreements and have a win-win approach for our people, our workers, and our middle classes."

Beyond the bilateral meetings, the G7 leaders took part in two working groups where discussion of trade wasfront and centre. Quebec troupe Cirque duSoleilwas tapped to supply evening entertainment.

Meanwhile, leaders from several nations attending the G7 as observers were invited to dinner at Gov. Gen. Julie Payette's Quebec residence near La Citadelle in Quebec CityFridaynight.