Mexican minister sees opportunity to advance stalled NAFTA talks
Xinhua
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Mexican Minister of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo (C) attends the fifth Business Meeting of the Pacific Alliance in Mexico's western city of Puerto Vallarta, July 23, 2018. A "window of opportunity" to resolve complex issues in renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has shown up, Mexican Minister of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo said on Monday. (Photo: Xinhua)

PUERTO VALLARTA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A "window of opportunity" to resolve complex issues in renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has shown up, Mexican Minister of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo said on Monday.

"Clearly there is a window of opportunity to be able to bed down a series of open issues," Guajardo said at the fifth Business Meeting of the Pacific Alliance in Mexico's western city of Puerto Vallarta.

The minister is scheduled to meet with Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Washington on July 26.

NAFTA renegotiations began in August last year after demands made by the Trump administration, which denounced the deal and threatened to abandon it.

The negotiating teams hoped to reach an "agreement in principle" at the beginning of May, but talks were suspended after Mexico and Canada disputed over the demands made by the United States.

The Pacific Alliance is a Latin American trade bloc comprising Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.