"We will only agree to a deal that is a good deal for Canada. We are not there yet," said Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland early Friday afternoon.
A spokesperson at the US Trade Representative's office also confirmed that negotiations were ongoing on updating the three-way trade pact between the United States, Canada and Mexico.
"There have been no concessions by Canada on agriculture," the spokesperson said.
US President Donald Trump has said he wants Canada to end its steep tariffs on US dairy products, claiming they hurt US farmers. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has pledged to protect his country's dairy industry.
President Trump is pushing for a Friday announcement on the trade deal so that officials can sign it before Mexico's president-elect, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, takes office on December 1.
The White House must give Congress an official 90-day notice before entering into a new trade deal. If the administration notifies Congress Friday, President Trump will be allowed to sign the deal by November 30.
Even then, Congress could still block the deal. It's unlikely any rewrite of NAFTA would come up for a vote until 2019. (Procedure rules allow the president to sign the trade deal first, before Congress votes on it.)
President Trump has indicated he would move forward to notify Congress of a new NAFTA deal without having Canada on board.
He and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto announced a preliminary bilateral deal on Monday after resolving an issue over auto manufacturing. Canada rejoined the negotiations on Wednesday.
Officials from Canada and Mexico have repeatedly made it clear that they want a trilateral deal.
It's possible that President Trump could notify Congress of a bilateral deal on Friday — starting the 90-day clock — that would allow Canada to sign on at a later date.
The president could submit the text of the agreement to Congress as late as September 30, and still sign the deal before December 1.
"Those 30 days is where they could have some wiggle room to revise the text and bring in Canada," said Rob Scott, the director of trade and manufacturing policy research at the Economic Policy Institute.
The governments of Canada and Mexico must also ratify the agreement. If they don't, there's no deal.
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