EU to Start Trade with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia

European Union governments agreed to start trade talks with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, with the aim of lowering trade barriers and bolstering economic growth in the North African and Middle Eastern states, the EU executive said. Trade cooperation is part of the EU's broad efforts to support democratic transition in the region after popular protests toppled leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya this year.

The four countries are members of the World Trade Organization and already have agreements with the EU on trade in goods. New talks would aim to extend that to areas such as agriculture and services, as well as build up regional cooperation. "Compared to the current trade relationship between the EU and these countries, the (trade agreements) will go beyond removing only tariffs to cover all regulatory issues relevant to trade, such as investment protection and public procurement," the executive European Commission said.

European governments have already started talks with the Tunisian and Moroccan governments on migration issues such as visa policies, the return of illegal migrants and border security. However, any deal on trade or immigration is likely to be difficult to negotiate among EU governments. Southern EU states are likely to oppose too many trade breaks because of concern over their agricultural sectors.

Others may be reluctant to open EU borders to newcomers wide enough to achieve increased cooperation on border security. The European Union's total trade with the countries of the southern Mediterranean was 224 billion euros in 2009 -- some 10 percent of total EU external trade.