Romania and Bulgaria said Friday they would no longer block a troubled EU-Canada free trade accord after they reached a deal with Ottawa over visa waivers for their citizens. Both countries had made visa-free travel a key condition for their support of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) currently being negotiated between the European Union and Canada.
"Together with the Romanian president (Klaus Iohannis), we received proper written assurances that by December 1, 2017, the visa regime for Canada for all our nationals will be dropped," Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said. "Under the circumstances, we decided to back the (CETA) agreement," he told journalists at an EU trade summit in Brussels. Iohannis also confirmed that Romania had struck a "reasonable accord" with Canada. "If the number of illegal migrants passes a certain threshold, Canada reserves the right to temporarily reintroduce visas," he said.
In order to enter into effect, CETA must be endorsed unanimously by all EU member states. But after seven years of talks and just days from its planned signing on October 27, the accord remains in limbo as the parliament of the Belgian region of Wallonia continues to block it.
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