Ambassador to talk trade amid renewed EU negotiations
Increasing trade ties with Australia will be front and centre in a major address by the European Union's leading diplomat.
EU ambassador Gabriele Visentin will speak to the National Press Club on Wednesday, as Australia and the trading bloc revive negotiations for a sweeping free-trade agreement.
Long-stalled talks have resumed following the global uncertainty caused by US President Donald Trump's tariffs on exports to America, which have up-ended long-standing relationships.
While negotiations began in 2018, they stalled over the EU's issues with geographic indicators.
The trading bloc had been concerned by Australian producers using terms like prosecco or feta for products that didn't come from specific regions in Europe.
Trade is expected to be a key point of Mr Visentin's speech, which will centre on the EU as a crucial world power.
The EU is Australia's third-largest trading partner, with 450 million people in the European bloc, and is worth more than $150 billion a year.
Trade Minister Don Farrell met with his European counterparts while in Paris for the OECD summit last week.
He said he was confident a deal could be reached.
"We've got lots of things that we can sell to the Europeans," he said.
"I believe now that there's an appetite to reach an agreement on both sides. The world has changed."
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