Government roles

Introduction

Australia and the EU share political, economic and social ties dating back to English and European settlement. This relationship has changed significantly since colonial times. An economic partnership, however, remains the mainstay of this relationship. Dialogue with Europe, taken as a single entity, began in 1976 with ministerial consultations between the European Commission and Australia on a range of issues. Discussions on bilateral trade issues grew to include multilateral trade matters and international relations, with cooperation on strategic and security issues, education, science and technology, environmental protection, development aid, competition and consumer policy. In the 1980s, these became formal annual meetings between Brussels and Canberra. It is the role of Australia's government to continue these talks and to pursue common ground in the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and in Australia's own Asia-Pacific region in the ASEAN Ministerial Forum and South Pacific Forum. Australia's government does this through monthly formal consultations with the EU Presidency and through regular consultations between European and Australian Parliament committees.

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Government dialogue and cooperation

The importance of strong bilateral relations with the EU is acknowledged in Australia's Foreign and Trade Policy White Paper. The White Paper underlines future prospects for stability and growth in the EU and its impact on international diplomacy. Since its release, a major initiative has been an agreement by Australian ministers and European commissioners to undertake a review of progress under the Joint Declaration on Relations between Australia and the European Union (1997), with a view to identifying priorities for future cooperation. In 2003, ministerial consultations were held in Melbourne to adopt the outcomes of this review and to establish areas for future dialogue. It was proposed that dialogue take place at a ministerial level, between the President of the European Council, the European Commission and Australia, and at summit meetings between the President of the Council, the President of the European Commission and the Prime Minister of Australia.

• developments in Iraq, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region
• issues discussed in the WTO Doha negotiation, including agricultural trade and protection policies
• developments internal to the EU, such as its expansion and its future social, economic and political integration of member states

Parliamentary roles

Ties between the Australian and European parliaments have allowed Australia to promote its interests in the EU through an inter-parliamentary delegation. Mutual visits by parliamentarians reinforce this link and influence EU decision-makers. In 2005, a delegation from the European Parliament visited Australia, and in 2006, a delegation from Australia visited Europe. Annual ministerial and senior officials-level meetings are also held, including consultations between Australia and the European Commission and with the Presidency of the EU Council. Each six months, the position of EU Presidency is held by a different member state. For example, Australia held meetings with a United Kingdom EU Presidency in September 2005 and an Austrian Presidency in January 2006. Between 1997 and 2004, a total of 13 consultations with the EU Presidency took place.

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Ministerial meetings and visits

Meetings between ministers and senior officials are held annually in the EU and Australia on bilateral issues. These play an important role in strengthening relations between the two. Regular consultations between Australia and the European Commission include the Senior Officials Meeting, the informal Trade Policy Dialogue, and talks by the Agricultural Trade and Marketing Experts Group (ATMEG). Between 1997 and 2004, a total of 21 ministerial consultations, Senior Officials and ATMEG meetings took place. Examples of ministerial level visits to Brussels include that of Prime Minister John Howard for discussions with Commission President Prodi in 2002. Such visits have been supplemented by discussions held between senior officials on specific issues. Former European Commissioner for Trade, Pascal Lamy, visited Australia in 2002 to attend the Informal WTO Ministerial Meeting in Sydney.

Australia-EU Troika Talks on Asia

Annual talks are held on Asia with the EU Troika, consisting of EU representatives and the EU Presidency. These talks have sought to promote stability and economic growth in Europe and the Asia-Pacific through dialogue on mutual concerns in this region. Seven rounds of these discussions have taken place since they commenced in 1998.

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