WASHINGTON—Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday that a deal on the North American Free Trade Agreement is “very close.” U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade chief said Thursday that a deal is “nowhere near close.”Trudeau had expressed optimism again on Thursday, saying a good deal was “on the table” and that negotiators were down to their “last conversations.” But U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer struck a markedly different tone in an unusual statement later in the day.“As I said last week, there are gaping differences on intellectual property, agricultural market access, de minimis levels, energy, labor, rules of origin, geographical indications, and much more,” Lighthizer said, promising to “continue to engage in negotiations.”Lighthizer issued the statement after U.S. officials held meetings with top Trudeau officials, including his chief of staff Katie Telford and his point man for U.S. affairs, Brian Clow. Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland also returned to Washington on Thursday.The day prior, a Canadian government source told the Star that there were indeed several major issues that had not been resolved — nor even discussed in depth in recent weeks as top officials focused almost exclusively on auto manufacturing. Trudeau, the source said, meant that a quick deal could be had if the U.S. was willing to make significant compromises.U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan had said that various mandatory review periods under U.S. trade law meant that Thursday was the last day to reach a deal that could be voted on by the Republican-controlled Congress this year. On Thursday, though, Ryan told reporters that there might be a window of two more weeks, since it’s possible that the U.S. International Trade Commission could take less than its allotted 105 days to issue an analysis of the impact of the agreement. Trade analysts said it is far from certain ...
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