Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate finance committee, said the accelerating pace of conversations between the two governments suggests progress toward a resolution, and face-to-face meetings may happen “very soon.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Vice-President Mike Pence discussed the issue in a call today, and Trudeau also raised it with President Donald Trump last Thursday. Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland will discuss the tariffs—which also apply to Mexico—with Graciela Márquez Colín, Mexico’s economic secretary, in Toronto on Tuesday. (Politico)

Talking point: Congressional officials in the U.S., as well as the Canadian and Mexican governments, have said the ratification of the USMCA depends on the removal of tariffs. Grassley is among those opposed to the levies, and is working on legislation to prevent the president from instituting similar ones in the future on the grounds of “national security.” He’s also been in direct discussions on trade with Trump this week, so he’s likely to have a good read on the progress of talks. But lifting the levies—or converting them into quotas, as the Trump administration has suggested—won’t be enough to move the trade deal forward on its own. Congressional Democrats are pushing for stronger labour reforms in Mexico and more enforcement powers on the agreement’s environmental protections.