EU, Japan agree on free trade deal

That they were able to pull together to do a deal with Japan, just months after signing a similar deal with Canada, shows this type of cooperation still has a future.

The European Union and Japan have agreed “in principle” on a free trade deal that will affect an overwhelming majority of commerce between the two economic giants and will be officially endorsed at a summit of their leaders Thursday.

“In this regard, we appeal for the early adoption of a new and comprehensive UN Security Council resolution”, Tusk said.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (R) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attend a joint press conference after the EU-Japan Summit in Brussels, Belgium, July 6, 2017.

“We in the European Union firmly believe in the political objective of a world which is built on openness, cooperation and trade”, Tusk told reporters in the Belgian capital during an EU-Japan summit. The EU wants a trade agreement with Japan to remove trade barriers and send a message that both economies do not support protectionism, the commission said. Import duties on Japanese cars now stand at 10 percent, but the new trade agreement will see these barriers removed.

The two sides struck the deal at bilateral ministerial talks in Brussels on Wednesday by resolving thorny issues including Japanese tariffs on cheese imports.

Belgium’s Wallonia region held up the ratification process for the trade deal with Canada previous year, nearly hindering the signing of the accord.

Mrs May used the phrase 10 times in her Lancaster House speech in January, a key address in which she fleshed out her Brexit approach ahead of triggering Article 50, the formal process for leaving the EU. Wine exporters alone should save 134 million euros a year in duty and no longer be a big disadvantage to US and Australian wineries.

“Opening up opportunities for business is not enough”, said Pedro Silva Pereira, S&D MEP and negotiator on the EU-Japan trade deal.

What does the trade deal do? The bloc’s top court ruled that the agreement in “its current form” can not be handled by the Commission acting alone. They’ll also face tougher competition in the Japanese market.

Ireland’s goods trade with Japan is valued at more than €4bn a year, with a similar value for the services trade.

Much remained unclear or unresolved, their leader Ska Keller said, calling also for it to do more to stop Japanese whaling.

Europe has also agreed to a lowering of tariffs on scallops and other seafood imported from Japan. Japan will have to ratify a few core International Labour Organisation conventions to be in compliance with the agreement.

“We are asking the G20 to take action against protectionism and this is a concrete example of how this could be done”, he added. “These are the best tools to harness and shape globalization and create more economic growth and jobs”. Most EU food exports, including chocolate and biscuits, will see tariffs end over time.

However, the deal reached today is only a political agreement.

The leaders of the European Union and Japan met in Brussels to reaffirm the strength of their Strategic Partnership and will demonstrate their resolve to work together for peace, prosperity and a rules-based global order.