Bill Clinton photo

Statement on North American Free Trade Agreement Supplemental Accords

August 13, 1993

I am pleased that the United States, Mexico, and Canada have reached agreement on the supplemental accords to the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Last fall, I pledged that I would not submit NAFTA to Congress until my administration addressed shortfalls in the areas of environmental protection, worker rights, and import surges. Early this morning we fulfilled that promise. Today I pledge my strongest commitment to a major effort this fall to secure NAFTA's passage.

With the completion of the side accords, we have turned NAFTA into a pathbreaking trade agreement. NAFTA is strongly in the interest of the United States. This agreement helps our workers, our environment, our businesses, and our consumers.

With these agreements on environmental quality and labor standards, the North American Free Trade Agreement has become a fair trade agreement as well.

NAFTA will create thousands of high paying American jobs by unlocking access to Mexico, a growing market of 90 million people that thirst for American products and services. The old rules marked by high trade barriers and preferences for companies manufacturing in Mexico have been pushed aside. In their place NAFTA establishes a level playing field, low tariffs, and a tough mechanism for resolving environmental and labor problems.

NAFTA is part of my broad economic strategy to gear the American economy for a changing world, to channel change for the benefit of working men and women. I look forward to working with the Congress and the American people to make NAFTA a reality.

William J. Clinton, Statement on North American Free Trade Agreement Supplemental Accords Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/217762

Filed Under

Categories

Simple Search of Our Archives