Brussels, 03/12/2008 (Agence Europe) - Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith ended his visit to Brussels on Tuesday 2 December. During his three-day trip he met Belgian, NATO and EU officials. This series of meetings bears testament to the fresh impetus brought to relations with the EU since the visit of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in April.
At his meeting with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on Monday 1 December, Smith confirmed that Australia did not intend to increase its military presence in Afghanistan. Australia's “significant contribution, larger than that of some NATO countries” is roughly 1,100 troops, deployed mainly in the south of the country. “At this stage, we are not proposing to reduce our commitment in Afghanistan,” he stated, however. Also on Monday, he met Commissioners Fischer Boel (Agriculture), to sign the EU-Australia wine agreement (see EUROPE 9794), and Dimas (Environment), to discuss the Australian version of the CO2 emissions trading scheme (ETS) which will come into being on 15 December.
On Tuesday 2 December, Smith met High Representative for the CFSP Javier Solana, External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner and Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton. Speaking to a few journalists before the meeting, he said that he was confident that a ministerial meeting would shortly be convened at WTO headquarters to conclude Doha negotiations. “There is a real prospect that ministers will be invited to Geneva before the end of the year,” he said. (A.B./transl.rt)