Brussels, 08/05/2015 (Agence Europe) - During a press conference at the end of the European Trade Council on Thursday 7 May, Latvia's Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics announced that the European trade ministers, their counterparts from the Eastern Partnership countries and the European Commission had underlined their resolve to enhance their economic cooperation.
“The Presidency and the Commission confirmed that they were ready to work on the differentiated strengthening of trade relations with each of the partners”, said the Latvian Presidency and Commission in a joint press release. They also spoke of the need to work for “inclusive and sustainable” economic development. “There is a range of fairly diverse and varied relations with the partner countries”, Rinkevics stated.
The EU has signed association agreements, with deep and comprehensive free trade areas, with Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. According to European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström, the Commission will continue to support Georgia and Moldova for the full implementation of the free trade area. She reiterated that the entry into force of the free trade area with Ukraine is planned for 1 January 2016. A political meeting between Russia's Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, chaired by Malmström, will be held in Brussels on 18 May to see how to respond to Russia's concerns about this agreement.
As Armenia decided to turn towards the Customs Union at the Eastern Partnership summit, negotiations could be launched for a new agreement which would take account of its participation in this union (see EUROPE 11234).
Rinkevics also stated that the EU was ready to help Belarus and Azerbaijan, which are not members of the WTO, to become so. He added that, for Minsk, a more structured and more regular dialogue was possible. According to European calculations, trade between the EU and Belarus stands at €11 billion per year. As regards Azerbaijan, more cooperation in the area of energy is reportedly planned.
Rinkevics said that the meeting between the trade ministers of the EU and partner countries - the first of its kind (which took place exactly six years to the day after the launch of the Eastern Partnership in Prague on 7 May 2009) - enabled an exchange of views and a better understanding of what the partners want to gain from the Riga summit (on 21-22 May) and beyond. A business summit is also being organised alongside the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, and Malmström will attend this. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)