Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Marija Pejčinović Burić attended 10 November in Brussels a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in the trade format.
The first item on the agenda was preparations for the 11th World Trade Organisation ministerial conference, to be held 10-13 November 2017 in Buenos Aires. The ministers discussed EU priorities and achievable goals as part of the WTO's multilateral trade system.
The discussion then focused on the state of trade negotiations with Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) and with Mexico. Both agreements are in sensitive final stages and all that remains is to determine key elements that would lead to their conclusion. Croatia supported wrapping up the negotiations as soon as possible and underscored the importance of protecting agricultural products in the EU.
The ministers also discussed the current status of negotiations on the EU-Japan economic partnership agreement and presented the European Commission’s report on the implementation of the EU's free trade agreement.