CANBERRA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Australian Prime Minister (PM) Anthony Albanese said on Monday that he will use an official trip to Italy to discuss tariffs and free trade with fellow world leaders.
Albanese on Monday confirmed that he will attend Pope Leo XIV's inauguration at Vatican City on Sunday and use the opportunity to meet with world leaders, including Canadian PM Mark Carney, to discuss trade.
The Australian PM, who won a second term in power at the May 3 federal election, will on Wednesday travel to Indonesia for his first overseas trip since the election before flying from Jakarta to Rome.
Albanese said on Monday that he is looking forward to meeting Carney in person for the first time while in Italy and discussing "trade and tariff issues" with world leaders.
Talks between Australia and the European Union on a free trade agreement collapsed in 2023, but Albanese's re-elected government has moved to reopen negotiations in response to U.S. tariffs imposed in April.
"We tried to have a free trade agreement with Europe and it will be good to have a discussion further about whether that can be advanced," Albanese told reporters in Canberra.
The negotiations on the free trade deal broke down in 2023 when the two sides could not reach an agreement on access to the EU market for Australian agricultural exports.
News Corp Australia newspapers reported earlier in May that Albanese was prepared to offer the EU an exemption from Australia's tax on luxury car imports in exchange for better access for agricultural exports. ■
