Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell and EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič say negotiations are moving forward again, reviving the prospect of a free trade agreement that collapsed in 2023 over agriculture and market access.

Australia and the European Union have signalled renewed progress in their long-running trade negotiations, raising the prospect that a free trade agreement suspended in 2023 may now be nearing completion.

Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell said on 17 March that he had held “a productive call” overnight with EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and that he was confident the two sides could still reach an agreement. Reuters reportedthat the exchange pointed to fresh momentum in talks that had previously broken down over market access, particularly for agricultural products.

Farrell said he looked forward to continuing work towards an agreement that was in Australia’s national interest. Šefčovič said the talks were moving in the right direction and that he remained committed to securing a successful outcome. He said the two sides were working towards a mutually beneficial agreement for all stakeholders.

The central disputes are not new. The previous negotiating push collapsed in 2023 largely because Australia wanted greater access for lamb and beef exports to the European market, while the EU sought improved access to Australia’s critical minerals and lower tariffs on manufactured goods. Reuters reported in February that both sides had made progress in narrowing the remaining gaps, but that several outstanding issues remained unresolved.

Those sticking points are also reflected in European Parliament material tracking the file. A Parliament update published this month states that negotiations were suspended on 29 October 2023 after 15 rounds, despite provisional agreement on a number of chapters and sub-chapters. It says the talks were revived in June 2025 after Farrell met Šefčovič on the margins of the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting, but notes that several issues could still delay or derail a final deal. These include access for Australian farm produce, the treatment of geographical indications such as prosecco, parmesan and feta, the price of Australian raw materials, and Australia’s taxes on luxury vehicle imports.

That broader context matters because the agreement has significance beyond the bilateral relationship itself. The renewed push comes as the EU seeks to strengthen its trade position amid wider tensions with the United States and China. It linked the Australian talks to the bloc’s wider effort to diversify economic partnerships, reporting that the EU had struck a trade deal with India in January as part of that approach.

From an EU Global perspective, the story is therefore not simply about tariff schedules or farm quotas. It is also about the EU’s external economic positioning in a more fragmented trading environment. Australia is a politically aligned partner in the Indo-Pacific, a supplier of raw materials and a state with which Brussels has sought closer strategic engagement on supply chains, trade diversification and rules-based commerce. The EU’s own diplomatic messaging in early 2026 has reflected that wider frame. During Šefčovič’s January visit to Australia, the EU delegation said discussions had covered trade diversification, supply chain resilience, digital trade and the global trade environment, including reform of the World Trade Organization.

That does not mean an agreement is complete. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had told EU leaders that the negotiations were in their “final stretch”, and that she could travel to Australia as soon as this weekend to sign a deal, though those plans had not been finalised. That remains prospective rather than settled. What is confirmed is that both sides are again using language associated with deal-making rather than deadlock.

For Canberra, the case for a deal has long rested on better market access for agricultural exports and broader diversification of trade relationships. For Brussels, it is tied to a wider strategic logic: deeper commercial links with like-minded partners, improved access to raw materials and a stronger economic presence in the Indo-Pacific. Those two objectives do not always align neatly at the negotiating table, which is why the agreement has proved harder to close than political rhetoric often suggests.

Still, after months of renewed contact and a second consecutive public indication of progress from both principals, the negotiations now appear more advanced than at any point since the 2023 breakdown. Whether that leads to a signed agreement in the coming days or simply another extension of talks will depend on whether the remaining disputes can be converted into an acceptable political compromise.

Source: EU Today

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