During a meeting with their U.S. counterparts this week, Canadian negotiators will pitch the elimination of the deal’s investor-state dispute settlement provision — and the U.S. is expected to agree to that proposal, allowing for what private-sector and congressional sources called a “win” for U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in one of his priority areas in the talks.
[Jenny Leonard | February 22, 2018 | Inside US Trade]
The decision to yield to Lighthizer’s demands on ISDS was described as part of a larger bargain in the negotiations, opening the door for possible U.S. concessions on Canadian and Mexican priority areas, these sources said.
Mexico — the NAFTA country most interested in keeping ISDS intact because of foreign investments in its energy sector — is not going to oppose Canada’s offer in the hopes of securing other concessions, the sources told Inside U.S. Trade.
“They would like to have it but they’re not going to be the one to save it,” one source said of Mexico’s stance on the issue.
Read more at Inside US Trade
