CETA: A Trade Agreement of the Future & The Future of Trade Agreements

On June 27, 2018, EACCNY hosted  a candid discussion about trade agreements with three preeminent experts on the subject of negotiating successful trade pacts. All three have been on the frontlines of these negotiations and will be able to share unique insights. Panelists included Pierre Marc-Johnson24th Premier of Quebec and Quebec’s lead negotiator for CETA, Ignacio Garcia Bercero, EU Chief Negotiator for the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership TTIP, and Daniel EriksonManaging Director, Blue Star Strategies and former Special Advisor to Vice Presidents Joseph Biden and Mike Pence [moderator].

Topics covered included:
• Do trade agreements work and if so why?
• CETA (EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) an example of how modern trade agreements look like; incl. comparisons to NAFTA, TTIP
• Teaching an old trade agreement a few new tricks: updating existing arrangements to address new market realities
• Multi-Lateral trade vs. Bilateral trade: Why do we need trade agreements?
• The future of trade in the current political climate
Back to the WTO: What are the alternatives to a CETA, TTIP, TTP, NAFTA? 
• Concrete: What do these trade agreements mean to Canadian, US companies and European Companies; what are some of the concrete advantages