Introduction

The origin of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) dates back to 1988 when President Ronald Reagan of the United States and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney of Canada initiated the CanadaU.S. Free Trade Agreement (Canada-U.S. FTA). To some extent the Reagan-Mulroney decision was an extension of their philosophical beliefs in free trade and limited government intervention in economic affairs. Both Ronald Reagan and Brian Mulroney are ardent conservatives with strong beliefs in a laissez-faire approach to economics. Additionally, both had been elected on conservative platforms and were anxious to implement their respective campaign promises. Finally, the economies of the United States and Canada were so closely interwoven that Canada-U.S. FTA was a natural extension of existing activities. In fact, it can be argued that Canada-U.S. FTA was a mere institutionalization of a de facto economic union.*