High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini will on 7 and 8 August travel to Wellington and Sydney for her first visits to New Zealand and Australia in her current role. Both visits will provide an opportunity for the High Representative/Vice-President to take stock of the excellent state of EU-New Zealand and EU-Australia relations respectively, to address ways in which the bilateral relationships can be enhanced, as well as to increase the joint work to tackle global challenges, including through multilateral fora.
In New Zealand, Federica Mogherini will meet with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister of Defence Ron Mark. She will also meet with Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters, with whom she speak to the press. The European Union and New Zealand launched negotiations for a comprehensive and ambitious trade agreement on 21 June 2018. Federica Mogherini will travel to Sydney one year after the EU and Australia signed a Framework Agreement to deepen cooperation.
In Sydney, Federica Mogherini will hold a joint press conference with her Australian counterpart, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, after their extensive bilateral meeting, and will also meet the Governor-General of Australia, Sir Peter Cosgrove, to take stock of the excellent state of EU-Australia bilateral relations, as well as the joint work to tackle regional and global challenges. High Representative/Vice-President Mogherini will also address the European Australian Business Council, just over one month after the launch of negotiations for an EU-Australia trade agreement. The visit comes off the back of the High Representative’s visits to Singapore and the Republic of Korea, on which topic press material is available online.
Coverage of all parts of the visit will be provided by EbS. Visit the websites of the respective EU Delegations for more information on EU relations with New Zealand and Australia.
(For more information: Maja Kocijančič – Tel.: +32 229 86570; Judith Hebekeuser – Tel.: +32 229 52656)
