Canada, EU keep pressure on Walloons to abandon opposition to trade deal
OTTAWA — Canadian and European politicians are continuing to lobby a Belgian region this weekend to abandon its opposition to a coveted free trade deal before a key meeting on Tuesday.
They have warned the leader of Wallonia that failure to approve the agreement would cast a pall over Canada-EU relations and affect the European Union’s credibility as a trading partner.
In a letter dated Friday, the heads of the Canada-Europe roundtable also told Paul Magnette that Belgium will be to blame if the agreement fails.
Europe’s ability to unanimously approve the deal was dealt a setback Friday when the legislature of Wallonia voted to reject the deal.