One day after signing a trade pact with the European Union, the Canadian government said it would start work immediately on implementation. The so-called CETA agreement was regarded for months as an indicator of prospects for a U.S.-EU free-trade agreement; the EU trade commissioner says the initiative is still alive although on the sidelines while the United States chooses its next president.
“TTIP is not dead but TTIP is not yet an agreement,” said EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom after objections to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement were resolved, reported Reuters. “The U.S. election will naturally bring the negotiations to a pause and we will resume with the new administration.” TTIP is the abbreviation for the U.S.-EU Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.
The Canada-EU pact could be in effect as early as December, said iPolitics, a Canadian news site. Canadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland said legislation to implement the agreement would be introduced in Parliament on Monday. Freeland told reporters the European Parliament could vote on CETA in December. The Trudeau government is expected to carry out promises made by its predecessor to assist dairy producers and fish processors in the transition to CETA.
Agricultural issues, like the right to use names such as Parmesan cheese and acceptance of GMO crops, have figured in the slow-moving TTIP negotiations.