Trump, traveling home from a G20 summit in Argentina, told reporters aboard Air Force One that he would give formal notice to Congress on "terminating" NAFTA "within a relatively short period of time."
![Both bodies belong to a category of asteroids called potentially hazardous asteroids (image used for illustrative purpose) [Peter Carril/ESA]](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg'%20width%3D'100'%20height%3D'100'%20data-ring-placeholder%3D'1'%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Both bodies belong to a category of asteroids called potentially hazardous asteroids (image used for illustrative purpose) [Peter Carril/ESA]")
That would trigger a six-month waiting period before the US could leave the pact -- during that time, US lawmakers would be asked to approve the new deal signed on Friday with America's neighbors.
Trump says the new pact -- known in Washington as the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) -- will help US workers, especially in the auto industry, and better safeguard intellectual property.
"We get rid of NAFTA. It's been a disaster for the United States," said Trump, who insisted that the North American Free Trade Agreement, in place for nearly a quarter-century, was a killer of American jobs.
"That'll be terminated so Congress will have a choice of the USMCA or pre-NAFTA, which worked very well," the Republican president said.
The signing of USMCA was a victory for Trump, following months of tense and difficult negotiations with Ottawa and Mexico City.
Trump said Friday that he did not foresee a problem with getting congressional approval, but some Democrats -- who will control the US House of Representatives as of January -- have expressed skepticism.
Nancy Pelosi, the frontrunner to regain her position as Speaker of the House, on Friday called the deal a "work in progress."
"What isn't in it yet are enough enforcement reassurances regarding workers" and the environment, she told a press conference.
"This is not something that we have a piece of paper where we can say yes or no to it," said Pelosi, who added that Mexico had not yet passed a law on wages and working conditions.
The new deal also requires legislative approval in Canada and Mexico.
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![Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Joe Biden [BBC]](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg'%20width%3D'300'%20height%3D'172'%20data-ring-placeholder%3D'1'%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E "Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Joe Biden [BBC]")
