Freeing Trade in North America

Conceived in an era of rapid post-Cold War economic liberalization, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), signed in 1994, brought together Canada, Mexico, and the United States with the aim of creating a regional trade bloc that eliminated the friction and costs of trade between the three nations.

Without an overarching institutional framework, NAFTA never sought to attain the levels of integration achieved by the European Union - for many it was a missed opportunity - and never q...