The Mexican government seeks to improve the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which is expected to be renegotiated between the three countries that are part of it.

“Our objectives are very clear, we want to work and grow together,” Karen Antebi, economic counselor for the Office of the Ministry of the Economy of Mexico in Washington, D.C. said.“We want to make the region more competitive. NAFTA works, although there is always room for improvement.”

Antebi is in charge of promoting the trade relationship between the United States and Mexico, and ensure proper implementation of NAFTA.

This week, Antebi visited San Diego to talk about NAFTA in a conference.

NAFTA is an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico and the U.S., creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America.

The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Canada.

In recent months, NAFTA has made headlines because U.S. president Donald Trump has made different announcements regarding the agreement.

Trump has said numerous times that he pretends to pull the United States out of the agreement if it’s not modified to favor his country.

“NAFTA and the trade relationship between the United States and Mexico have been on the news almost every day,” Antebi said. “We have a strong trade relationship that benefits both countries. We welcome the idea of updating NAFTA, which was asked by the Trump administration.”

The process to start the renegotiations of NAFTA has already started at the U.S. Congress, and it included a public comment period.

The U.S. government received approximately 12,450 public comments, which can be used to establish the negotiation objectives for the country.

“I think we are going to have negotiations about issues of the 21st Century,” Antebi said about the upcoming treaty renegotiations. “We are not going to accept measures that restrict the trade, we are seeking for measures that make the trade grow.”

Some of the issues that are expected to be part of the treaty renegotiations are: digital economy, energy sector, and telecommunications.

“With the renegotiations, we can look for rules and measures that are going to make the region stronger and more competitive by working together,” Antebi said. “I think this is an opportunity to reinstate awareness about Mexico being a good neighbor and about being a good business partner.”

NAFTA renegotiations between the three countries can begin as soon as August 16, according to the requisites established by U.S. law.