"Our relationship with Mexico is getting closer by the hour," Trump wrote on Twitter.
Later in the day, Jesus Seade, designated chief negotiator of Mexico's next government, told journalists that Washington had softened its position on a "sunset clause", adding that a "correct focus" on NAFTA's energy chapter has already been substantially agreed.
"It's going to come out. It's no longer what the United States was putting first in any way," Jesus Seade stated.
Canada, Mexico and the United States have been engaged in talks at Trump’s initiative over the modernization of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for exactly a year.
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NAFTA took effect 24 years ago. Politicians from all the three sides have repeatedly called for the agreement to be modernized, as e-commerce and digital services have largely re-shaped the trade patterns that were in place at the time the deal was signed.