29 May 2008
Minister for Trade visit to Peru, the United States and France
The Minister for Trade, the Hon Simon Crean MP, will visit Arequipa, Newark and Paris to pursue Australia’s trade and economic interests at a number of Ministerial meetings. The major focus of all of these meetings will be to continue to push for a successful conclusion of the WTO Doha Round of trade negotiations.
Minister Crean will attend the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting in Arequipa, Peru, on 31 May and 1 June.
The APEC Trade Ministers’ meeting comes at a vital juncture in the global trade negotiations.
“New negotiating texts are on the table, and I will be urging APEC colleagues to respond positively as individual WTO members, but also to issue collectively a strong APEC statement of support for a successful conclusion to the Round,” Mr Crean said.
“I will also use the opportunity to inform my APEC colleagues about the conclusion of negotiations on the Australia-Chile Free Trade Agreement – a high quality agreement that will serve as a model for other bilateral and regional FTAs amongst APEC economies.”
“In addition to working with Peru, I also look forward to working with the next three hosts of APEC – Singapore, Japan and the US - on the development of an active APEC agenda for the next three years.”
In Arequipa, Mr Crean will also have bilateral meetings to pursue Australia’s trade and economic interests with other APEC economies.
On 2 June, Mr Crean will travel to Newark in the United States to participate in the annual Ministerial trade meeting with his US counterpart, US Trade Representative Susan Schwab.
“I will use this opportunity to underline the importance of an ambitious Doha outcome and to register Australia's disappointment at the 2008 Farm Bill,” said Mr Crean.
“I will also explore with Ambassador Schwab how we can use the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement to broaden the trade and economic relationship, including for our services sector.”
On 3-5 June, I will visit Paris to participate in the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting.
The OECD Meeting will have a specific session on the Doha Round, assess the world economic outlook, including the impact of high food and energy prices, and the benefits of structural economic reform.
On 5 June, Mr Crean will also host an informal gathering of Trade Ministers to discuss how to narrow the gaps in the Doha agenda prior to the Geneva meeting of Trade Ministers expected over the next few weeks.
“At the OECD Meeting I will highlight the positive impact that a conclusion to the Doha Round would have on confidence in the world economy and as a positive step in helping to address food security concerns”, Mr Crean said.
Media Inquiries: Mr Crean's office 02 6277 7420 - Departmental Media Liaison 02 6261 1555