The EU and the Philippines first launched negotiations for an FTA in 2015.
Article continues below
The last negotiating round took place in 2017 and negotiations have since been on hold. Philippines, EU resume free trade agreement talks.
On 30 June 2022, the current administration assumed office and has shown willingness to engage with the EU on key issues of importance.
In 2023, the EU and the Philippines launched a stocktaking exercise to assess their readiness to resume negotiations for an FTA, which was concluded at the end of 2023, confirming that a resumption of negotiations would be appropriate.
The 2021 EU Indo-Pacific Strategy confirms the EU's longstanding interest in resuming FTA negotiations with the Philippines.
The EU already has state-of-the-art FTAs in place with two ASEAN countries (Singapore and Vietnam), is negotiating FTAs with Indonesia, Thailand, and is carrying out a stocktaking exercise with Malaysia.
The Philippines currently enjoys trade preferences under the EU's Generalised Scheme of Preferences + (GSP+), a special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance which grants duty-free access to the EU market for two-thirds of tariff lines.
The EU is one of the largest investors in the Philippines, with the EU's foreign direct investment stock in the Philippines reaching €13.7 billion in 2021.
In addition to being a significant and growing economy, the Philippines also has major reserves of critical raw materials, including nickel, copper and chromite, which are vital for the manufacture of green technologies.
Combined with the Philippines' renewed efforts to harvest its renewable energy potential and recent liberalisation for foreign investors in the sector, the Philippines is an important partner in the green transition.
This enhanced access is conditional on the Philippines implementing a range of international conventions covering issues such as human and labour rights, good governance, and environmental protection.
The EU will continue to monitor the Philippines' compliance with its international obligations in these areas and pursue its ongoing dialogue to encourage further improvement. ■