STRASBOURG, FRANCE—Prime Minister Justin Trudeau showed the European Union some much needed love today in a highly-anticipated speech following its ratification of the free trade pact with Canada.But he also warned that if the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement doesn’t succeed it could be the last deal of its kind.“The European Union is a truly remarkable achievement, and an unprecedented model for peaceful co-operation. Canada knows that an effective European voice on the global stage isn’t just preferable — it’s essential,” Trudeau said.“If we are successful, CETA will become the blueprint for all ambitious, future trade deals. If we are not, this could well be one of the last.”It has been a rough year for the 28-country EU with Britain’s decision to leave the bloc, a decision praised by U.S. President Donald Trump who has mused about which country might be next.Trudeau is the first Canadian prime minister to address the European Parliament, and his speech was a shot in the arm for the alliance after last summer’s pro-Brexit vote that has sparked the historic and protracted divorce negotiation between Britain and the EU.Trump’s ambassador designate to the EU, Ted Malloch, told the Associated Press earlier this week that the EU’s “blatant anti-Americanism” is “problematic.”In his speech, Trudeau said people who complain that trade deals benefit only a few have a valid concern, but deals like the Canada-EU free trade pact are good for all.Trudeau delivered that message in his much-anticipated address to the European Parliament today, his attempt to argue for free trade in the face of an increasingly hostile, populist opposition that includes the Trump administration.“Now, we live in a time when many people are worried that the current system only benefits society’s luckiest few. And their concern is valid,” Trudeau s ...
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