Centrum Stosunków Międzynarodowych - 27 October 2016: Belgium reached an agreement to back CETA

Today, the Belgian government reached an agreement on the controversial points of the free trade deal between the European Union and Canada. Officially the deal was supposed to be signed on 27 October 2016, however, after Belgium announced its veto due to opposition from Brussels city and Wallonia, the ratification of CETA had to be postponed. Thus, the Canadian Prime Justin Trudeau cancelled his trip until the EU will be ready to sign the deal. Now, the Belgian parliaments reached an agreement and this agreement is now being sent to the European Union and the various parliaments in Belgium. If they agree, the road to signing the CETA agreement at EU level will be free.

Donald Tusk, President of the EU Council, perceived Belgium’s agreement as good news and announced that as soon as all final procedures and signatures over CETA by the EU will be finalized he will contact the Canadian Prime Minister to finalize the CETA deal.

The Belgian agreement which is a four-page text that will be added to the treaty, but will not change anything about the treaty itself, must still be vetted by ambassadors from the other 27 EU member states and it must be endorsed by Belgium’s regional parliaments. Thus, a positive outcome is not guaranteed yet and the opposition towards this deal can still be unpredictable.