- Trade talks with the European Union are on pause after wavey waters between France and AUKUS drown political correspondence
- President of the EU Ursula von der Leyen delays the free-trade agreement talks till November
- German and Lithuanian ministers say trust needs to be earned back between the nations before any new trade arrangements can be made
Trade talks with the EU have been put on pause after wavey waters between France and AUKUS drown political correspondence.
Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan said mid-October talks with the EU have been postponed after the EU backs French flareup with Australia.
“We understand the French reaction to our submarine decision, but ultimately any nation must act in its national interest – which is what Australia has done,” Minister Tehan said.
President of the EU Ursula von der Leyen delayed the free-trade agreement talks till November this year.
“One of our member states has been treated in a way that is not acceptable, so we need to know what happened and why,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in unison of France.
Multiple countries within the EU have supported France and ultimately the EU’s decision to rethink the trade agreement, German and Lithuanian ministers have said trust needs to be earned back between the nations before any new arrangements can be made.
Trade data from 2020 shows the EU ranks third after China and Japan as Australia’s largest trade partner.
The past year is evidence of the fragility of Australian trade and its intangibility with political decisions. As an example, the drop in trade with China is a representation of Australian dependency on its long-running trade relationships.