The eighth meeting of the Accession Conference with Albania confirmed that Albania has, on the whole, met the interim criteria of the so-called Group 1: Foundations. This group covers, in particular, the functioning of democratic institutions, public administration reform, the rule of law and economic criteria. “The milestone reached today by Albania confirms the fulfilment […]
Commission welcomes political agreement on strengthening farmers’ position
The European Commission welcomes the political agreement reached yesterday between the European Parliament and the Council on the proposal for specific amendments to the legislation governing thecommon organisation of the markets in agricultural products (CMO)and other related provisions of the EU’s agricultural policy. These changes will strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply […]
The Commission proposes to open negotiations to extend EU roaming to the Western Balkans
The European Commission has proposedopening negotiations with Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia to integrate them into the EU’s “Roam Like at Home” regime. Once agreements with each of the partners have been finalised and they are all fully aligned with EU roaming rules, people travelling between the EU and the […]
Jordan: Council adopts negotiating position on EU assistance of EUR 500 million in loans
The Council decided today on its position in negotiations with the European Parliament on the provision of a further EUR 500 million of macro-financial assistance to Jordan. The EU assistance will help strengthen Jordan’s economic stability and underpin its ongoing reform programme in the face of growing internal and external challenges. It aims to support […]
EU and Indonesia conclude negotiations on free trade agreement
Following the political agreement reached on 13 July by President von der Leyen and President Prabowo Subianto, today the EU and Indonesia finalised negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and an Investment Protection Agreement (IPA). On the EU side, negotiations were led by Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič. Currently in Indonesia, he is marking this […]
Commission welcomes EU mandate to start negotiations with GCC countries
The European Commission and the High Representative welcome the Council’s decision authorising them to enter into negotiations with each of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with the aim of concluding bilateral Strategic Partnership Agreements (SPAs). The aim of the SPAs is […]
EU and UAE launch free trade talks
The European Union and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have formally launched negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement, opening the possibility of the first comprehensive EU trade deal in the Gulf region. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, first agreed to […]
EU and UK conclude technical negotiations for a future competition cooperation agreement
Today, the European Commission and the UK finalised the technical discussions on a competition cooperation agreement between the EU and the UK. The competition cooperation agreement will be a ‘supplementing agreement’ to the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (‘TCA’), which foresees the possibility to enter into a separate agreement on competition cooperation. The future competition […]
EU and Switzerland launch negotiations to deepen bilateral relations
President Ursula von der Leyen and President of the Swiss Confederation Viola Amherd launched the negotiations on a broad package of measures to deepen and expand the EU-Switzerland relationship. This follows the adoption of the Swiss and EU negotiating mandates on 8 and 12 March 2024, respectively. The two mandates authorise the Commission and Switzerland to […]