AN Australian-EU trade deal would be mutually beneficial and allow EU members a greater presence in the Indo-Pacific, said Australia’s trade minister, as Canberra tries to repair ties with Paris after the scrapping of a US$40 billion submarine deal. Australia last week canceled a deal with France’s Naval Group to build a fleet of conventional submarines and will instead build at least eight nuclear-powered submarines with U.S. and British technology after striking a trilateral security partnership with those two countries. The cancellation has angered France, which accused both Australia and the United States of stabbing it in the back, and it recalled its ambassadors from both Canberra and Washington. In solidarity with France, EU lawmakers have publicly questioned whether a trade deal with Australia could be possible. Australia’s Minister for Trade Dan Tehan yesterday urged the EU to progress ahead with a trade deal. “The Australia-EU free trade agreement is in the best interests of all parties,” Tehan said in a speech in Canberra. “The EU will use it as a way to strengthen its engagement with the Indo-Pacific because they realize that the region carries the economic weight of the world.” Australia and the EU are set to hold the next round of talks on a trade deal Oct. 12. (SD-Agencies) | 