Latvia Becomes First EU Member State to Approve CETA

The Latvian parliament ratified the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) last week, making the Baltic country the first of the EU’s member states to do so on an individual basis. The move was welcomed by Canadian officials, with Minister of International Trade François-Philippe Champagne stating in a news release that his country “commends Latvia’s leadership on being the first to ratify this ground-breaking trade agreement.” “The successful passing of CETA in Latvia is an important step on the road to full ratification of an agreement that will bring prosperity to the middle class and those working hard to join it across Europe and Canada,” he added. The head of the Saeima Foreign Affairs Commission, Ojārs Ēriks Kalniņš, described CETA as "one of the most progressive and modern agreements that has been drawn up," according to Latvia's public broadcaster. Saeima is the name of the Latvian parliament. CETA was approved by the European Parliament in mid-February, when it received the endorsement of the 751-member legislative body by a large majority. The approval will enable the two sides to apply the accord on a provisional level after Canada completes its own legislative processes. (See Bridges Weekly, 16 February 2017 )...