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Donald Trump considering separate trade deals with Canada, Mexico

In this April 21, 2008 file photo, national flags of the United States, Canada, and Mexico fly in the breeze in New Orleans. AP Photo/Judi Bottoni

WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump may seek separate talks with Canada and Mexico in a bid to get individual trade deals with the two countries, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Tuesday.

“He is very seriously contemplating kind of a shift in the NAFTA negotiations. His preference now, and he asked me to convey this, is to actually negotiate with Mexico and Canada separately,” Kudlow said in an interview with Fox News.

READ MORE: Chrystia Freeland on U.S. tariffs, Trump’s claim Canada is security threat

“He may be moving quickly towards these bilateral discussions instead of as a whole.”

WATCH: Mike Pompeo welcomes Mexico’s foreign secretary amid reports the U.S. is considering bilateral trade talks with Mexico and Canada

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U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo welcomes Mexico’s Foreign Secretary Videgaray

The United States, Canada and Mexico have been in months of negotiations to rework the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Trump has long criticized as having harmed the United States economically.

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On Friday, Trump said he might prefer to end NAFTA in favor of separate bilateral agreements with the two U.S. neighbors.

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Kudlow said the U.S. president was moving toward that scenario.

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Justin Trudeau, Chrystia Freeland talk tariffs on U.S. political shows
Click to play video: 'Trump says Canada takes advantage of U.S. economically'
Trump says Canada takes advantage of U.S. economically

“He prefers bilateral negotiations and he’s looking at two much different countries,” he said. “Canada’s a different country than Mexico. They have different problems.

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“He believes that bilaterals have always been better. He hates these multilaterals … he hates large treaties.”

WATCH: Opposition Leader asks Prime Minister why there’s delay in Canadian tariffs taking effect
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Opposition Leader asks Prime Minister why there’s delay in Canadian tariffs taking effect

Such a move toward separate talks would come at a tense time in U.S. trade relations with the two countries. The Trump administration said on Thursday it was moving ahead with tariffs on aluminum and steel imports from Canada, Mexico and the European Union, ending a two-month exemption and setting the stage for a possible trade war.

READ MORE: Donald Trump hints at axing NAFTA to create separate trade deals with Canada, Mexico

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the tariffs an affront to the longstanding security partnership between Canada and the United States, and Canada announced retaliatory steps.

In a television appearance on Sunday, Kudlow called the trade frictions a “family quarrel.”

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