Washington has dramatically increased tensions in talks to renew the North American Free Trade Agreement by proposing that the life span of any new deal be limited to five years, people familiar with the negotiations said Thursday.
The proposal for a so-called sunset clause — just one of a series of U.S. initiatives that are opposed by NAFTA partners Canada and Mexico — only served to increase uncertainty about the future of the deal.
Two sources with direct knowledge of the talks described the atmosphere as "horrible" and highly charged.