#au-eu-summit

#au-eu-summit

Macron underscored the need for France and South Korea to cooperate to help reopen the strait and deescalate Middle East animosities, affirming their resolve to secure the safe shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz.

Austria's Defense Ministry stated, 'There have indeed been requests and they were refused from the outset.' The refusal is based on the country's neutrality policy, which has been in effect since 1955.

Germany on Monday thanked US President Donald Trump for extending Berlin an invitation to take up a seat on his so-called "Board of Peace." German government spokesman Steffen Cornelius said: "We are thankful for this invitation. We share the aim of pursuing peace in the world. It is in Germany's core interest to end the conflict in Gaza for good."

Germany and Italy are deepening defense and economic cooperation with the leaders of the two countries signing an agreement in Rome. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni agreed on closer cooperation in the production of drones, naval vessels, underwater systems and air and missile defense systems. The leaders are also looking to collaborate in the development of electronic warfare and aerial combat defense systems.

The sum of exports and imports between the two countries last year totalled 251.8 billion (roughly $296.6 billion), a 2.1% increase, according to Destatis. China was Germany's most important trading partner from 2016 all the way through to 2023. In 2024, the US briefly held the title. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is also set to visit China next week, where he is set to discuss trade and other topics.

Friedrich Merz said he saw a "great opportunity" for the industrial exporters, while Xi Jinping called for "enhanced strategic cooperation." China has been courting Western leaders amid Trump's trade tensions. It's Merz's first trip to China since he became chancellor, his predecessor Olaf Scholz visited in 2024.

After nearly two decades of negotiations, India and the European Union announced Tuesday they have reached a free trade agreement to deepen economic and strategic ties. The accord, which the EU chief described as the "mother of all deals," could affect as many as 2 billion people. The deal between two of the world's biggest markets comes as Washington targets both India and the EU with steep import tariffs, disrupting established trade flows and pushing major economies to seek alternate partnerships.

Australia and the EU are on the brink of striking a long sought after free trade agreement, with both sides talking up significant progress during talks in Brussels overnight. Ahead of a planned visit to Australia by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, due within months, a joint statement issued after the latest talks attended by the trade minister, Don Farrell, signalled major progress. The two sides said they had been able to converge on key differences which have dogged the deal for years.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reassured a nervous Europe on Saturday that Washington wants to "revitalise" the transatlantic alliance. "We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history," Rubio said. "What we want is a reinvigorated alliance." Rubio stressed that the US and Europe "belong together" and must act as partners to defend shared values.

When EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa arrived at Jordan's Al Husainiyah Palace at midday on Thursday, there was not a cloud in the sky. Temperatures hovered around a pleasant 20 degrees Celsius. While large parts of Europe were struggling with heavy snowfall, Jordan was showing its best side, as were the leaders gathered for the first-ever EUJordan summit in Amman.

We want to speed up the European Union, we want to make it better, and we want to ensure that we have a competitive industry in Europe.

"A rift has opened up between Europe and the United States. Vice President JD Vance said this very openly here in Munich a year ago," Merz said. "He was right. The culture war of the MAGA movement is not ours," Merz said, referring to US President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan. "Freedom of speech ends here with us when that speech goes against human dignity and the constitution. We do not believe in tariffs and protectionism, but in free trade."

The deal would forge a market of two billion people and nearly a quarter of global GDP, according to the European Commission. Follow DW for more. EU and India conclude trade negotiations after nearly two decades of on-off negotiationsImage: Altaf Hussain/REUTERS Skip next section What you need to know EU and India have finalized a trade deal after nearly two decades of negotiations

Meeting in Munich over the weekend, officials on both sides said they wanted to continue to work together. In the world of geopolitics all eyes were on Southern Germany over the weekend where the Munich Security Conference (MSC) served as the latest make or break moment for Germany-US relations. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered the event's opening speech in which he acknowledged that a rift has opened up with the US, and urged trans-Atlantic partners to repair and revive trust.

Major agreement reached after 20 years of negotiations and during ongoing tensions with the US. New Delhi, India India and the European Union have signed a free trade agreement that both sides have hailed as the mother of all deals. The agreement, announced on Tuesday, came together over nearly two decades of intermittent negotiations and during a geoeconomic crisis triggered by United States President Donald Trump's trade war.

Brussels would be willing to discuss closer trade ties with the UK, including the possibility of cooperation on a customs union, a senior European commissioner has said, signalling the clearest openness yet from the EU to re-engage with Britain.Speaking to the BBC after high-level talks in London, Valdis Dombrovskis, the European Commissioner for Economy, said the EU was "ready to engage with an open mind" if the UK wanted to explore deeper economic alignment.