The next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) will take place in Brussels on 22 May 2018. The Hungarian delegation will be led by H.E. Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The Council will adopt mandates to open negotiations on Free Trade Agreements with Australia and New Zealand and Council Conclusions on the negotiation and conclusion of EU trade agreements.
The Council will review the state of play of the negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO) following the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC11) held in 2017 December and will discuss the strategy and priorities of the EU ahead of the WTO mini-ministerial meeting to be held on 31 May in the margins of the OECD trade ministerial meeting. Due to major differences among the WTO Members’ positions there were no substantial outcome in the MC11, and as the US is still blocking the selection of the new members of the WTO Appellate Body the WTO faces serious challenges.
Ministers will exchange views on the council decisions on the signing and conclusion of the EU-Japan Free Trade Agreement, the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement and the EU-Singapore Investment Protection Agreement. Hungary looks forward to sign and conclude the agreements with Japan and Singapore as soon as possible and hopes that the improved market access conditions will contribute to increase its exports to these markets.
Ministers will be debriefed on the state of play of the ongoing free trade negotiations in particular with Mercosur and the modernization of the existing Global Agreement with Mexico. Commissioner Malmström will present the outcome of the agreement in principle with Mexico which Hungary welcomes. Regarding the Mercosur negotiations, Hungary can support an agreement with Mercosur countries, provided that it is balanced, comprehensive, well-calibrated and reflects Hungarian agricultural sensitivities appropriately.
During a working lunch Ministers will discuss the state of play of the trade relations between the EU and the United States, with special attention to the Union’s position regarding the US steel and aluminium tariff measure.
