Macron says Canada-EU trade pact ‘a very good agreement’

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Montreal, Canada, on September 26, 2024. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP)

MONTREAL, Canada — French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday during a visit to Canada that a Canada-EU free trade pact signed almost a decade ago was a “very good agreement” that will eventually be adopted.

“I am confident,” he said of the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement’s (CETA) eventual ratification in the EU and France.

The pact stirred controversy six months ago after the French Senate rejected it. However, this vote has no consequences on the provisional implementation of CETA, “which is almost total.”

“If someone is against CETA today, it is because they never want to make a trade agreement with anyone again because it represents the best possible standard,” explained the French president.

“The reality is the numbers show that it is a very good agreement.”

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CETA, which notably removes customs duties on 98 percent of products traded between the European Union and Canada, is strongly criticized, particularly by French cattle ranchers.

Ten European states have yet to ratify this trade agreement, which came into force provisionally at the European level on September 21, 2017.