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Belgium reaches agreement on landmark EU-Canada trade pact

A landmark trade deal between the European Union and Canada is expected to go ahead after the Belgian government cleared a major hurdle.

Belgium's prime minister Charles Michel said his national government had reached a deal with the holdout region of Wallonia, which had been opposed to the deal, holding it up with a de-facto veto.

The deal, known as CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement), needs unanimity from all 28 EU governments to be signed.

"Belgian agreement on #CETA. All parliaments are now able to approve by tomorrow at midnight. Important step for EU and Canada," Mr Michel tweeted.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had been due to travel to Brussels today to sign the deal, but the plan was scrapped as the negotiations with Wallonia dragged on.

EU President Donald Tusk said on Twitter (Xetra: A1W6XZ - news) he was "glad for good news."

The new text agreed in Belgium will still have to be put to the other EU nations.

Still, the Belgian go-ahead was a huge relief to EU leaders, as the CETA pact has been seven years in the making and liberalises trade between the EU bloc of 500 million consumers and 35 million Canadians.

Furthermore, the negotiations were seen as a litmus test ahead of Brexit talks.

The pact aims to eliminate 98% of tariffs between the EU and Canada and could increase trade by 20%.

But it has also drawn several protests, with critics saying the agreement took the interest of giant corporations more at heart than those of common people.

Wallonia, a Socialist stronghold, said it wanted more transparency and was opposed to an arbitration system it said gave too much power to multinationals.

It also feared the deal would put further strain on Belgium's struggling agricultural community.

But the region, a small area with just 3.6 million people, was accused of hijacking the deal and holding the EU hostage. For EU leaders, its opposition has been both frustrating and embarrassing.

Wallonia President Paul Magnette said the text that has been agreed provides guarantees for farmers and on a corporate dispute settlement system that "will allow us to sign the deal."

"We always fought for treaties that reinforced the social and environmental standards, protect the public services and that there is no private arbitration" in dispute settlements, he said.

"All this is achieved as of now."

"I am sorry for all the other Europeans we made wait and for our Canadian partners. But if we took a bit of time, what we achieved here is important, not only for Wallonia but for all Europeans."