The two sides also signed a Security and Defence Partnership to facilitate better cooperation on crisis management and security challenges. Australia was pushing the EU to raise the amount of beef that can enter the bloc under preferential terms. Farmers “will now pay the price for this subpar EU deal for decades to come,” he said. “Australia is blessed with huge natural wealth and they have possession of almost all critical minerals we need,” Sefcovic said. The minerals deal would also reduce dependency on China, which she framed as both an economic and security concern, criticizing its recent “weaponization” of supply chains.

Source: Irish Examiner March 24, 2026 07:41 UTC