EU And New Zealand Seal 'state-of-the-art' Trade Deal

The EU and New Zealand sealed a free trade deal on Thursday after four years of talks, promising it would protect the environment and unite like-minded partners amid international turmoil

Brussels, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 30th Jun, 2022 ) :The EU and New Zealand sealed a free trade deal on Thursday after four years of talks, promising it would protect the environment and unite like-minded partners amid international turmoil.

"This is a historic moment in our cooperation," EU commission chief Ursula von der Leyen told reporters at a joint appearance with New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, adding that the deal had come after "tough negotiations".

Ardern hailed a "historic further milestone in the strong partnership between two closely-connected like-minded friends." "And while this is an incredibly important day for our trade relationship, it's also a time to acknowledge the extraordinary time and challenges that Europe is facing," she added.

The pact brings economies of vastly different sizes closer together: New Zealand has a population of just five million people against the EU's 450 million.

Once it has survived a potentially long ratification process, the EU said the deal would eliminate all tariffs on its exports to New Zealand.

It will also open markets in key sectors such as financial services, telecommunications, maritime transport and delivery services.

Wellington said the treaty could increase the value of New Zealand's exports to the EU by around 1 billion Euros ($1.

04 billion) a year by 2035, particularly in agriculture.

New Zealand exports such as kiwi fruit and meat have until now been subject to prohibitive tariffs.

- 'High ambition' - Both sides underlined environmental and social issues, amid concern in some corners of Europe that trade deals are a threat to climate goals and upholding rights of workers.

"This free trade agreement includes high ambition outcomes in areas related to the Paris Agreement, climate action, labour rights, gender equality, and harmful fishery subsidies," New Zealand Trade Minister Damien O'Connor told reporters.

His EU counterpart Valdis Dombrovskis called the deal "a state of the art trade deal for the EU" that showed "shared values with sustainability at its core." And given the war in Russia, he said, "It's important that we are dealing with like minded partners, partners with whom we can actually rely and make sure that our supply chains are resilient and reliable." The New Zealand agreement, the legal text of which will be finalised over the next months, will have to be agreed by the bloc's member states as well as survive a vote in the European Parliament.

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