Canada-European trade envoy Pierre Pettigrew optimistic CETA will be approved

Canada has done everything it could to address any concerns within the EU, and now the ball is in its court, said Pettigrew, who last week was dispatched to meet with Wallonia Minister President Paul Magnette.

“We have worked very hard in the last few months to bring reassurances that we in Canada share those same progressive views,” Pettigrew said.

EU nations were scheduled to vote on the deal Tuesday, but that was delayed after Magnette raised objections, saying he needs a few more days.

Pettigrew said the vote could happen as early as Thursday, when EU leaders kick off a two-day summit.

Wallonia, with a population of 3.5 million, wants more guarantees to protect its farmers and Europe’s labour, environmental and consumer standards. It also fears the agreement will allow huge multinationals — first from Canada, later from the United States, if a similar deal with Washington follows — that would crush small Walloon enterprises and their way of life.

Proponents say the deal would yield billions in added trade through tariff cuts and other measures to lower barriers to commerce. At the same time, the EU says it will keep in place the region’s strong safeguards on social, environmental and labour issues.

Wallonia’s rejection left many stumped, even within Belgium, wondering how the small region could have such an impact on a deal between over 500 million EU citizens and 35 million Canadians.

“If we don’t agree with Canada, with whom are we going to agree?” asked Slovak Economics Minister Peter Ziga, who chaired Tuesday’s meeting.

Former Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney, no stranger to the complications of trade deals given his role as one of the architects of NAFTA, appeared unfazed by the dispute.

“Every once in a while you run into a hiccup in these things,” said Mulroney, who also spoke before the Montreal Board of Trade. “This is a hiccup, but I don’t think it’s going to derail such an important negotiation.”

International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland said Canada has made significant changes to the deal and remains “cautiously optimistic” that it will receive European approval.

“We’re doing everything that we can to support the efforts inside Europe to get this agreement to the finish line, but at the end of the day, as our European partners know, ultimately, this is a European decision,” she told reporters in Ottawa.

“I am both hopeful and I also hope that Europe and Europeans can come together to make this decision, which is the right one for Canada and for Europe.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to fly to Brussels next week to sign the agreement should it be unanimously approved by the EU.

— With files from The Associated Press

Follow @RossMarowits on Twitter.

Ross Marowits, The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Canada-European trade envoy Pierre Pettigrew optimistic CETA will be approved

What's Happening