NAFTA Hits a Temporary Roadblock

After working with Canada and Mexico for more than two years to clear the way for increased commercial truck traffic across the borders, Washington has delayed implementation of a key provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement. This is a surprising and ill-conceived move.

President Clinton and Transportation Secretary Federico Pena, apparently torn between keeping a commitment to NAFTA and the fear of alienating American labor and environmental groups going into an election year, have postponed the free movement of U.S. long-haul trucks in Mexico and Mexican trucks in the southwestern United States.

On Monday, as Mexican truckers waited anxiously on the Mexican side of the Texas border and Teamsters Union officials protested on the Texas side, Pena announced that this new phase of NAFTA would be shelved until he and his Mexican counterpart could hold talks to “further improve safety and security measures” for Mexican trucks.

The decision handed the Teamsters a temporary victory even before a federal court in Washington could rule on a union lawsuit seeking to block the NAFTA opening.

The reaction of the Mexicans has been measured, considering the fact they thought truck safety concerns had been resolved by NAFTA’s transportation norms subcommittee. Officials in Mexico City say they are waiting to hear the new U.S. concerns and hope this issue will be resolved quickly and in a way that guarantees “nondiscriminatory treatment and effective reciprocity for investors and carriers.”

The American Trucking Assn., an operators group, was not as diplomatic. In criticizing Washington’s sudden change of heart, association spokesmen noted there had been many U.S.-Mexico meetings to work out differences and said agreement had already been reached.

Indeed, the Clinton administration’s hesitation sends the wrong signal concerning the level of Washington’s enthusiasm for NAFTA. Caving in to the labor unions, traditional enemies of free trade, may well come back to haunt Clinton at election time.

Pena now has 45 days to resolve any differences over trucking safety. After that, the three countries are expected to move on toward full implementation of NAFTA. This incident may turn out to be no more than a bump in the road leading to the promise of freer trade.