Brussels, 23/04/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 22 April, the European Union and Australia strengthened their cooperation by officially concluding their negotiations for the EU-Australia agreement. “This agreement will provide a solid basis on which to develop our cooperation on foreign and security policy, sustainable development, the supply of aid, economic and trade issues, justice, research and innovation, education, and global challenges such as climate change, migration and public health”, said High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
Mogherini and Bishop signed a cooperation agreement on crisis management, “a concrete expression of (our) determination to respond jointly to resolving international crises”. This agreement sets out a framework for Australia's participation in the EU's crisis management operations. Canberra participates in the EUCAP Nestor mission.
On the trade level, the EU and Australia committed to an informal process to assess each other's policies linked to free trade, with a view to strengthening their trade and investment relations. The EU and Australia are not currently planning on a free trade agreement (see EUROPE 11030).
Mogherini and Bishop also discussed the global and security challenges that the EU and Australia are facing. They agreed to step up the two parties' cooperation in order to fight the activities of terrorist groups such as Islamic State, and to address the growing challenge of foreign terrorist fighters. An initial EU-Australia dialogue on fighting terrorism was held in Brussels in November 2014.
The two leaders also discussed migration. The European and Australian visions on migration are very different - with Australia conducting a policy of systematic refoulement for immigrant boats. The talks also covered Ukraine, Iran, development in the Asia-Pacific region, and climate change (ahead of the meeting in Paris in December). In addition, Mogherini and Bishop underlined their determination to strengthen their efforts on cooperation and development, “including through the creation of a regular development dialogue at senior official level”.
The EU and Australia also set up a diplomatic exchange programme between the European External Action Service (EEAS) and Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade with a view to increasing cooperation between them. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)