ISDS Case Map
EU
European Union
The Association of Ghana Industry (AGI) has added its voice to the clarion cry on African governments not to sign the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) or risk killing local industries.
The European Union and countries in the Caribbean failed to agree on a new trade and investment deal in two days of talks that ended on Friday. EU officials had expected the Caribbean to become the first of the ACP regions to agree to a new deal.
"I want to make clear that the EU-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement that we are building is with only seven member nations of ASEAN. Laos and Cambodia have their own trade deals with the EU while we plan to put an embargo on Myanmar," says a member of the European Parliament.
West Africa will miss a Dec. 31 deadline to sign a new trade partnership with the European Union and hopes to keep its preferential commercial privileges for up to two years while it negotiates, a West African official said.
The European Union and Pacific countries agreed on Tuesday to seek an interim new trade deal, to enter into force on 1 January, while they continue negotiating an EPA by end of 2008.
EU sees a new readiness on the part of the Indian side which, for the first time, has put poverty reduction, labour standards and environmental protection under the bilateral trade framework.
Tempers flare as Caricom trade negotiators and the European Commission work with an October 15 deadline to initial an EU-Caribbean EPA
European parliamentarians urged Vietnam on Wednesday to fast-track negotiations for an EU-ASEAN free trade agreement as European businesses worry about competition from the United States and elsewhere.
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has made a renewed push for a free trade deal between New Zealand and the European Union, though she admits it is likely to be five years before real negotiations begin.
Singapore's refusal to soften its strict bank secrecy laws could scupper talks with Europe about a trade agreement, a European politician said on Tuesday.
