EU official hopes for trade pact with Canada by summer, ahead of U.S. talks

OTTAWA – A senior European Union official says he hopes his continent’s free trade deal with Canada will be final by mid year.

Roland Schafer, the Americas director of the European External Action Service, says that’s when he expects Europe’s major free trade talks with the United States will begin.

Schafer says those negotiations will require a lot of political attention.

He says that doesn’t necessarily mean the Canada-EU deal would be consigned to the back burner.

But he says a successful conclusion would send a positive signal to the world and set the tone for the U.S.-EU process, which is expected to take two years.

Last week, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said considerable progress towards a deal had been made but obstacles still remained.