Europe trade deal overcomes regional hurdle

benefits since the majority of CETA came into effect last September, said Reynders. A few kinks still need to be worked out, though. One of the major points of contention during the final stages of negotiations — including one that had Wallonia threatening to block CETA completely — was how investment disputes could be settled among the trade partners.

Instead of using existing mechanisms, Canada and the EU negotiated a new “investment court” that would, in theory, be more transparent than the dispute settlement panels already being used in other trade agreements. But the details have not been agreed upon. “We have made some progress, but it’s a long way (to go),” he said.