(VOVworld) – The EU and Canada signed the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) at the EU-Canada summit, which took place in Brussels on Sunday.

President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and President of European Council Donald Tusk at the signing ceremony of CETA in Brussels (Photo: AP/VNA)

The event is considered a milestone because CETA was likely to break due to the rejection of Wallonie and other Belgium’s speaking French regions a few days ago. Speaking at the summit, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker, said EU and Canada signed an important trade and economic agreement after 7 years of negotiations. After the deal takes effect, CETA will link EU, one of the biggest markets in the world with 500 million populations, to Canada, the tenth biggest market. 99% of tariffs between the two sides will be removed. The agreement will be approved by the European Parliament and Canadian Parliament before it officially comes into force.

At the summit, the leaders committed to strengthening bilateral cooperation in foreign policy including international peace-keeping, sustainable economic development, climate change prevention, and law implementation. They also discussed free visa to Canadian visitors to the EU and vice versa.