CETA deal signed, but still faces obstacles
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The free trade pact agreed upon by the European Union and Canada earlier this week will face challenges before it is fully-applied, according to Canadian government officials. “The work is only just beginning,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the National Post newspaper on Wednesday. Before its application, The Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) must first be approved by the EU Parliament, expected sometime in early 2017. After parliamentary ratification, it will be about 90 percent in force, according to EU officials, although Canadian trade minister Chrystia Freeland claimed that it will be, at this point, about 98 percent in force. Next, it must be ratified by the 28 national legislatures. In Poland, ratification of the deal requires that two-thirds of the Sejm approve it.
“The fact that throughout (negotiations) people were asking tough questions of a deal that will have a significant impact on our economies is a good thing,” Trudeau said. Opponents of CETA have claimed that it gives too much power to multi-nationals. It has been a symbol for anti-globalizers, against the much larger Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), soon-to-be negotiated between the United States and the EU.
