AUSTRALIA, EU FINALISE FREE TRADE DEAL

CANBERRA, March 24 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- Australian and European Union (EU) leaders on Tuesday announced they have finalised a "landmark" free trade agreement following years of negotiations, reported Xinhua.

 Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a joint statement after meeting in Canberra on Tuesday morning that both sides have struck a deal on the Australia-EU free trade agreement.

They said the deal will lower trade and investment barriers between the two markets upon completion of domestic processes.

Under the deal, 98 per cent of Australia's exports will enter the EU duty-free, and almost all EU tariffs on Australian agricultural products will be eliminated.

Speaking to reporters alongside Albanese at Parliament House, von der Leyen said that the trade deal would tell an important story to a changing world where great powers are using tariffs as "leverage."

"Open rules-based trade delivers some positive outcomes. Trust matters more than transactions," she said.

 According to Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the EU is the country's third-largest trading partner and second-largest source of foreign investment.

Negotiations on the trade deal began in 2018 but broke down in 2023 due to disputes over agricultural market access.

Talks on the free trade agreement were revived in 2025 in the wake of the United States implementing widespread tariffs.

"We stand for free and fair trade," Albanese said on Tuesday. "At a time when that is under some pressure globally, I think this agreement sends a message to the world that it is possible to stick to the rules."

In addition to finalising the trade deal, Albanese and von der Leyen also signed a security partnership on Tuesday to increase cooperation on the defence industry, maritime security, cyber and economic security and counter-terrorism.  

--BERNAMA-XINHUA