| | |  News Around the Republic of Mexico | November 2008 
President Calderon Cautions Against NAFTA Reform
 Leslie Josephs - Dow Jones Newswires
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| | Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (R) and her Mexican counterpart Felipe Calderon chat before the signing of bilateral agreements at the Casa Rosada Government House in Buenos Aires, November 24, 2008. Calderon is on a two-day visit to Argentina. (Reuters/Santiago Pandolfi) | | |
Lima - Mexican President Felipe Calderon warned Sunday against reform of the North American Free Trade Agreement, saying it would have devastating economic effects on both sides of the U.S. border.
U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has expressed concern about NAFTA, which went into force almost 15 years ago, and said he may consider renegotiating the deal.
Following a two-day summit of Pacific Rim economies, in which leaders implored the group's members not to erect protectionist barriers and embrace free trade, Calderon said in a press conference that "all studies, without exception" have found that NAFTA has lead to higher investment and employment in both the U.S. and Mexico.
He said amid the current global economy, the way forward is "broadening trade, not closing trade off."
"A revision of NAFTA driven by the mere aim to reduce trade would be damaging for the economy of Mexico and also damaging for the economy of the United States," Calderon said.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper also praised NAFTA during the summit.
Obama, who takes office on Jan. 20, has not warmed to the free trade deal with Colombia currently awaiting approval in the U.S. Congress, nor to similar pacts with South Korea and Panama.
In what is likely to be his last international address, U.S. President George W. Bush, at the summit held in Peru, railed against U.S. lawmakers for not passing these three accords, calling their failure to do so "extremely disappointing."
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