The EU teams up with Ecuador, Kenya, New Zealand to forge cooperation on trade and climate

The European Commission and the Trade Ministers of the European Union, Ecuador, Kenya and New Zealand have agreed to work jointly to forge an inclusive Coalition of Trade Ministers on Climate. This reflects their shared commitment to bringing the fight against climate change to the forefront of trade policy. The Ministers want to enhance Ministerial-level dialogue, so that trade and trade policies can support the Paris climate goals, sustainable development, environmental sustainability and a just transition. On Monday, they met Trade Ministers from a diverse group of countries to start a dialogue and enhance international cooperation on the trade and climate nexus and its contribution to sustainable development and environmental sustainability. The co-leads will meet in July to decide on the next steps for the creation of this new coalition. They will take into account the views expressed by the Ministers. Subsequently, the co-leads plan to organise the first Coalition meeting early next year. European Commission Executive Vice-President and Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, said: “I am proud to be working together with the Ministers of Ecuador, Kenya, and New Zealand on this inclusive platform to strengthen collaboration on trade and climate and environmental sustainability. Fighting climate change is an EU priority. We know that trade plays an important role in tackling this generational challenge, which is why our new EU trade strategy is the greenest ever. But climate change is a global problem and only by working together we can find truly global solutions. This Coalition will build a joint action to tackle the climate crisis in a fair manner through trade policy.” You will find more information here.