Australia and the European Union have signed a trade agreement after eight years of negotiations, under which most tariffs on European exports will be removed and exports of Australia’s critical minerals will be expanded. According to a report by Reuters, the agreement will eliminate more than 99 percent of tariffs on European Union goods exported to Australia. The deal is estimated to be worth around $10 billion annually to the Australian economy. Both sides have also agreed to expand their security and defense cooperation and to share intelligence information to counter global threats, online extremism, and the financing of terrorism. The agreement comes as the European Union is trying to reduce its economic dependence on China and strengthen its presence in the Indo-Pacific region.
