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31/10/2022 15:30 | Press release Informal meeting of trade ministers Ministers of European Union countries responsible for trade met in Prague. They discussed the geostrategic importance of trade and trade agreements as well as digital trade. They also dealt with trade relations with the USA.

Press release

31 October 202215:30

Informal meeting of trade ministers





Ministers of European Union countries responsible for trade met in Prague. They discussed the geostrategic importance of trade and trade agreements as well as digital trade. They also dealt with trade relations with the USA.


“Our debate today focused on the geostrategic importance of trade policy in context of the Russian aggression in Ukraine and its economic recovery. We also discussed trade relations between the European Union and the United States of America with our ministerial colleagues, with the participation of United States Trade Representative, Ambassador Katherine Tai. The meeting also included a strategic debate on the future of the European approach to digital trade,” says Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Síkela.

It is an open and active trade policy that can help solve a number of burning foreign policy issues. Thanks to diversification and entering new markets where the European Union's exported products and services can be supplied, the Union will become less vulnerable and less dependent on supplies from unpredictable authoritarian countries. That is why it is important that the European Union jointly strengthens its trade relations, especially with those partners who share similar values.

Ministers also discussed the role of digital trade, which is one of the priorities of the Czech Presidency of the European Union in the field of trade policy. “We cannot ignore other changes that the international business environment is experiencing and that are necessary for exporting and competitive economies. One of these trends is digitization. And since digitization is present practically everywhere, it is essential for the European Union to adapt to the new reality in which digitized states trade effectively with each other,” says Minister Síkela.

The informal meeting of trade ministers followed up on the presidential priority “Strategic resilience of the European economy”. The EU's priority is also the development of transatlantic trade relations. The United States is a key export market for the European Union, transatlantic cooperation is of extreme economic and geostrategic importance. “Therefore, I hope that our discussion will contribute to a successful outcome of the next Trade and Technology Council, which will facilitate the functioning of companies on both sides of the Atlantic,” adds Minister

 Síkela.https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-232045?&lg=INT

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Press material Monday 31 October 2022

● Council of the EU   31/10/2022 19:34 | Press release | Russia: Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on Russia’s decision to suspend its participation in the UN Black Sea Grain Initiative   Russia’s unjustified decision to suspend its participation in the UN Black Sea Grain Initiative obstructs the export of much needed grain to address the global food crisis. Russia is solely responsible for the global food security crisis it has caused by its unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine and its blockade of Ukrainian sea ports. The UN-brokered agreement has made, together with the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes, a significant difference by allowing the export of grain and agricultural products from Ukraine to the global markets and to the countries most in need, including in the Horn of Africa, Yemen and Afghanistan. The Black Sea Grain Initiative has brought to the global market 9,521,645 tons of grain and foodstuff. Since the beginning of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, Russia has been weaponising food and hunger. Russia’s deliberate actions, including destroying stocks, disrupting production, and imposing quota restrictions on its own export of foodstuff and fertilisers have exacerbated the global food security crisis. The European Union condemns Russia’s suspension of Black Sea Grain Initiative and urges Russia to reverse its decision and to immediately resume the implementation of the UN Black Sea Grain Initiative. The EU strongly supports the United Nations Secretary-General’s call for the extension of the initiative beyond its current period ending in November. The EU and its member states will continue to respond to the global food security crisis and support timely and stable delivery of Ukrainian agricultural products to global markets.