Second meeting of the EU - New Zealand Domestic Advisory Group

The 2nd EU-New Zealand DAG meeting took place on 28 January in Brussels, focusing on the state-of-play of implementation, including strategic exchanges with New Zealand counterparts and the European Commission. The New Zealand Ambassador to the EU confirmed the strong political commitment to open and rules-based trade, and highlighted the positive trade effects observed since the entry into force of the FTA. DG Trade confirmed that the FTA is proceeding well and confirmed that the first Civil Society Forum meeting should take place in Brussels back-to-back with the TSD Committee later this year. Overall, there is positive momentum of the EU-New Zealand FTA, the central role of civil society in its implementation, and the need for focused, pragmatic and cooperative engagement in the year ahead.