2023-01-12T15:21:54Z
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador speaks at a joint news conference with U.S. President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the conclusion of the North American Leaders’ Summit in Mexico City, Mexico, January 10, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Romero
The leaders of North America did not discuss an ongoing dispute over Mexico’s energy policies during a summit in Mexico City this week, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday.
“We did not discuss that,” Lopez Obrador told a news conference, noting that the dispute had its own resolution mechanism under the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement.
Washington and Ottawa in July launched dispute settlement proceedings under USMCA against Lopez Obrador’s drive to give priority to Mexico’s state-run energy companies, arguing the policy discriminates against private U.S. and Canadian firms.