By Professor Jacqueline Lo, Director, ANU Centre for European Studies, and Dr Annmarie Elijah, Associate Director, ANU Centre for European Studies

Australia’s relationship with the EU has come a long way but room for improvement remains, including the absence of a formal trade agreement. Australian policymakers mustn’t let Brexit delay closer EU-Australia ties.

Australian thinking and policy on European integration has, from the outset, been driven by two convictions: first, that the fundamental objectives of the European project are sound and in Australia’s broad interests; second, that an ‘open’ version of regional integration would best suit Australian economic interests.

The first of these usually prevails as a priority, and the second is responsible for much of the noise and trouble in the history of the bilateral relationship.

Read the full article on the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) website.

This article originally appeared in The EU and Australia: Share Opportunities and Common Challenges, published on the occasion of the inaugural EU-Australia Leadership Forum in Sydney on 2­­–6 June 2017. The AIIA is part of the international consortium selected to deliver the three-year EU-Australian Leadership Forum project, an initiative funded by the EU.