Press Release: Commissioners Mandelson and Rehn to launch South East Europe trade liberalisation talks

Preview of a meeting between EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson and EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn and the Prime Ministers from South East European (SEE) countries in Bucharest on 6 April 2006 for the launch of the creation of a single Free Trade Agreement for the region. This initiative of the countries of the region, prepared with the help of Stability Pact for SEE on the invitation of the Romanian government, was strongly supported by the European Commission. The framework for this co-operation was to be the existing Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA), would simultaneously be enlarged and adapted. It was to replace the complicated system of bilateral trade agreements in South East Europe with a single pact that would make it easier to trade and invest in the region. The aim was to conclude negotiations by the end of 2006.

• Primary Source

European Commission: DG Trade: Bilateral trade relations: Regions: Balkans http://ec.europa.eu/comm/trade/issues/bilateral/regions/balkans/index_en.htm

European Commission: Memo: MEMO/06/155: Trade in South Eastern Europe, 5.4.06 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/06/155&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

European Commission: SPEECH/06/228: Remarks at the launch of CEFTA expansion negotiations, 6.4.06 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/06/228&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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