PM headed to Brussels to sign CETA deal

Pact’s approval was delayed by opposition from Wallonia

OTTAWA— Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will finally travel to Brussels this weekend to sign the CanadaEU free trade deal known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA.

The Prime Minister’s Office, which confirmed Trudeau’s off-again, onagain travel plans, says he will depart tonight to attend the summit, now scheduled to take place on Sunday.

Trudeau spoke Friday with European Council president Donald Tusk, who confirmed that the texts of the deal, along with a side agreement known as the Strategic Partnership Agreement, have been approved and are ready to be signed.

Trudeau had initially expected to sign the deal in Brussels earlier this week, but the restive Belgian region of Wallonia put the brakes on that plan by standing in opposition to the controversial deal.

In recent weeks, the tiny Frenchspeaking region of 3.5 million people opposed the deal’s investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, with the support of other European politicians and anti-trade activists.

An agreement Thursday give national and regional parliaments throughout Europe new powers over those controversial investor protection provisions, prompting warnings from some observers that the pact remains a fragile one.

A final obstacle was removed when Wallonia officially voted to withdraw its opposition to the deal. Wallonia held a veto over Belgium’s ability to support the deal, which requires the support of all 28 EU countries. But its parliament voted overwhelmingly to allow the Belgian national government to support the pact.