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PACER

Australian ministers discuss Pacific free trade deal in Vanuatu
5-Apr-2009
Vanuatu’s government has indicated its support for a proposed regional free trade deal between Australia, New Zealand and the wider Pacific region.
Give PACER a chance, says Tonga Trade Minister
5-Apr-2009
Tonga’s Trade Minister says it’s unfair for people to criticise the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations or PACER PLUS until it is properly implemented.
Trade: Aust, NZ push trade agenda in region
10-Feb-2009 Islands Business
Governments in Australia and New Zealand are keen to assure Pacific nations that relations with the region are marked by ‘shared development goals’, but as Maureen Penjueli writes, the islands’ ‘big brothers’ have been pushing an agenda of their own—especially when it comes to negotiating a regional free trade agreement.
Is Australia genuine about a "new approach" to the Pacific?
25-Nov-2008 AidWatch
The Rudd government has made much of its ’new approach’ to Australia’s island neighbours, but the view from the Pacific — especially of the aggressive pursuit of a new free trade deal as part of the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) — is that not much has changed.
Some Pacific Island countries still not ready for free trade
23-Oct-2008 Pacific Magazine
Not all Pacific Islands countries are ready to open their doors to free trade under the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA), according to the Pacific Islands ACP Trade Ministers’ Meeting that was held in Fiji this week.
What’s so new about Rudd’s Pacific policy?
20-Sep-2008
The Rudd Government has made much of its “new approach” to Australia’s island neighbours, but the view from the Pacific is that not much has changed.
Viewpoint: Labour mobility deals
9-Aug-2008 Islands Business
Under pressure to sign on to new free trade agreements, Pacific Islands governments interested in securing positive outcomes for their peoples see deals on labour mobility as potential development gains. But is this the right approach? And what are the potential costs?
NGO says Australia bullying Pacific over free trade deal
6-Aug-2008 Pacific Magazine
Australia has been accused of trying to fast-track new free trade negotiations with Pacific Island countries at a recent regional trade ministers’ meeting in the Cook Islands.
Govt ‘must include workers in EPA talks’
1-Jul-2008
The Fiji Trades Union Congress (FTUC) has written to the interim Government to include workers in talks regarding the various trade agreements Fiji is treaty to.
Pacific trade ministers slam EU Trade Commissioner Mandelson
18-Apr-2008 Pacific Network on Globalisation
New letters show extent of dissent among Pacific trade ministers as ministers accuse top EU trade official of being "domineering" and using divide and rule tactics to split the region.
Crean spruiks free trade in Pacific
28-Feb-2008
The tiny island nations of the south Pacific should have high ambitions heading into free trade negotiations with Australia, Trade Minister Simon Crean says.
PACER: Islands could lose $10m anually in revenue
6-Sep-2007 Islands Business
Some Pacific island countries stand to lose up to US$10 million annually in revenue due to trade liberalisation under the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations, according to a report commissioned by the Secretariat of the Pacific Islands Forum
US-NZ Partnership Forum: Neo-liberalism - Pacific Style
31-Aug-2007
According to the organizers, this year’s US-NZ Partnership Forum will in part focus on the, “potential for the United States and New Zealand to cooperate on ... economic development and sustainability in the Asia Pacific region.”
Australia seeks equal trade rights in South Pacific
13-Jun-2007
Australia says it wants trade rights in the South Pacific equal to those being negotiated by the European Union.
Talks to look at Pacific trade deal
12-Jun-2007
A meeting in August is likely to explore the possibility of a free trade agreement between Pacific Island countries and New Zealand and Australia but rapid progress is not expected.
Australia And New Zealand Seek Pacific FTA
12-Jun-2007
Australia and New Zealand will begin discussions in August to strike a free trade deal with a group of Pacific island nations.
A citizen’s guide to an emerging empire
6-Nov-2006 Aotearoa Indymedia
This article is an introduction or guide to PICTA, PACER and the WTO in the Pacific. The ’guide’ gives readers basic knowledge of both trade agreements and the stepping stone function they provide towards the WTO re-colonising the Pacific.
A citizen’s guide to an emerging empire
2-Nov-2006 Aotearoa Indymedia
This article is an introduction or guide to PICTA, PACER and the WTO in the Pacific. The ’guide’ gives readers basic knowledge of both trade agreements and the stepping stone function they provide towards the WTO re-colonising the Pacific.
10 reasons to challenge the Pacific EPA
28-Sep-2006
Do the Pacific Islands’ negotiators genuinely hope they can negotiate a beneficial Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union or are they simply going through the motions and doing what is required of them under the Cotonou Agreement 2000? In the secretive chess game of trade negotiations it is impossible to know.
Understanding Fiji’s trade agreements
19-Sep-2006 Fiji Times
Most of us are usually kept in the dark when it comes to assessing the impact of trade agreements signed by our government. But this should not be the trend because whatever agreements are signed by our leaders eventually affect us all.