Informal meeting of EU trade ministers, 19-20 October 2023

Official Council meetings are organised by the Council of the EU and chaired by the Council presidency. However, each Council presidency also organises informal meetings of ministers to discuss initiatives related to a particular topic or Council configuration.

More information about the agenda and the outcome of this meeting is available on the presidency website.

Informal meeting of trade ministers, 19-20/10/2023

Meeting information

• Valencia
• 19-20 October 2023

Background

Trade ministers of the European Union (EU) member states will discuss how trade contributes to the economic security of the EU, as well as the state of the bilateral trade agenda of the 27.

On 20 October, the EU informal ministerial meeting on Trade will be held in Valencia under the Spanish presidency of the Council.

At the meeting in Valencia, officials from the various EU countries will discuss the role that trade policy can play in minimising the risks arising from economic interdependencies.

They will also examine how to maximise the benefits of the EU’s economic opening to other markets.

Trade negotiations with India

In the current geopolitical context, the EU believes that it should aim to increase its participation in the global economy at all levels.

To this end, it will discuss how to strengthen bilateral trade relations with strategic partners, such as India, one of the world’s largest markets.

A street market in an Indian city. © EFE/EPA/Idrees Mohammed

It will therefore take stock of the EU-India trade negotiations and the prospects for a “balanced, ambitious and mutually beneficial” free trade agreement.

This convention will seek to include separate agreements on investment protection, as well as on geographical indications (used to identify products that have a particular quality, reputation or other characteristic by virtue of their origin, according to the World Trade Organization).

Pending bilateral agreements

As one of its priorities, the Spanish presidency of the Council of the EU is set to speed up the trade agreements that are still pending, such as the EU-Mercosur agreement.

It also wants to modernise free trade agreements with Mexico and Chile.

Latin America is an essential and reliable partner for the European Union, which is why it is a priority to conclude trade agreements with this region in order to increase the diversification and resilience of production chains.

The aim of these agreements with Latin America is also to prevent the EU from losing influence in the region.

The meeting will therefore review the state of play of ongoing bilateral trade negotiations between the EU and other countries and regions, as well as the progress towards implementing already negotiated agreements, with a particular focus on those in the Latin American region.