South Africa–European Union relations

South Africa–European Union relations

European Union	South Africa

The European Union (EU) has strong cultural and historical links to South Africa (particularly through immigration from the Netherlands, Ireland, Germany, France, and Greece) and the EU is South Africa's biggest investor.^[1]

Comparison table

	European Union	South Africa
Population	447,706,209	58,775,022
Area	4,475,757 km2 (1,728,099 sq mi)	1,221,037 km2 (471,445 sq mi)
Population Density	117.2/km2 (303.5/sq mi)	42.4/km2 (109.8/sq mi)
Capital	Brussels	Pretoria
Government	Supranational and intergovernmental union	Unitary dominant-party parliamentary constitutional republic
Current leader	Council President Charles Michel Commission President Ursula von der Leyen	President Cyril Ramaphosa Deputy President David Mabuza
Official Languages	24 official languages, of which 3 considered "procedural" (English, French and German)[2]	11 official languages, English, Afrikaans, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu
Main Religions	71.6% Christian 45.3% Roman Catholic 11.1% Protestant 9.6% Eastern Orthodox 5.6% other Christian 24% No religion 1.8% Muslim 2.6% other faiths[3]
Ethnic Groups	Germans (ca. 80 million), French (ca. 67 million), Italians (ca. 60 million), Spanish (ca. 47 million), Poles (ca. 46 million), Romanians (ca. 16 million), Dutch (ca. 13 million), Greeks (ca. 11 million), Portuguese (ca. 11 million),	80.7% Black African, 8.8% Coloured, 7.9% White, 2.6% Asian
GDP (nominal)	$16.477 trillion, $31,801 per capita	$369.854 billion, $6,193 per capita

Agreements

Since the end of South Africa's apartheid, EU South African relations have flourished and they began a "Strategic Partnership" in 2007. In 1999 the two sides signed a Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) which entered into force in 2004, with some provisions being applied from 2000. The TDCA covered a wide range of issues from political cooperation, development and the establishment of a free trade area (FTA).^[1] The liberalisation schedules were completed by 2012.^[4] Since the signing of the Agreement, trade in goods between the two partners has increased by more than 120%, and foreign direct investment has grown five-fold.^[4]

Trade

South Africa is the EU's largest trading partner in Southern Africa and has a FTA with the EU. South Africa's main exports to the EU are fuels and mining products (27%), machinery and transport equipment (18%) and other semi-manufactured goods (16%). However they are growing and becoming more diverse. European exports to South Africa are primarily machinery & transport equipment (50%), chemicals (15%) and other semi-machinery (10%).^[4]

South Africa's foreign relations with EU member states

See also

• Foreign relations of the European Union
• Foreign relations of South Africa
• African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States

References

External links

• EU delegation to South Africa
• South Africa - European Commission Aid and Development
• Outlook on Europe: South Africa’s Relations with the European Union Since the End of Apartheid

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Foreign relations of the European Union

Bilateral relations

See also: Economic relationships with third countries Africa Algeria Cape Verde Egypt Libya Morocco South Africa Sudan Tunisia Americas Argentina trade Brazil Canada Cuba Greenland Mexico Peru United States Uruguay Asia Bahrain Bangladesh China India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Lebanon Malaysia Nepal North Korea Pakistan Palestine† Philippines South Korea Syria Taiwan Vietnam Yemen Europe Albania Andorra Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Bosnia and Herzegovina Faroe Islands Georgia Accession negotiations Iceland Kosovo† Liechtenstein Moldova Accession negotiations Monaco Montenegro North Macedonia Northern Cyprus† Norway Russia San Marino Serbia Sovereign Military Order of Malta Switzerland Turkey Accession negotiations Ukraine Accession negotiations United Kingdom Vatican City Oceania Australia Micronesia New Zealand Papua New Guinea Former Yugoslavia General Overseas territories of member states European microstates Largest trading partners Association Agreements Free trade agreements European Union Sanctions †= Disputed state, may not be recognised as an independent state by some or all European Union members.

Multilateral relations and initiatives

Organisations Arab League ASEAN Council of Europe ECHR G7 ICC IOC Mercosur NATO UN Initiatives African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States Asia–Europe Meeting CARIFORUM Customs Union Eastern Partnership Energy Community Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly European Common Aviation Area European Economic Area Euro-Mediterranean free trade area Euro-Mediterranean Partnership Euronest Economic Partnership Agreements EU CBRN Risk Mitigation CoE Initiative Neighbourhood Policy Northern Dimension Mediterranean Union Stabilisation and Association Process

Administration and policies

Foreign and Security Policy Global Strategy Neighbourhood Policy Enlargement Security and Defence Policy Administration Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development External Action Service Foreign Affairs Council High Representative Josep Borrell Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee Foreign Policy Instruments Service Diplomatic missions of the EU (ambassadors) / to the EU Special Representatives Funding Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance Global Europe

v t e Common Security and Defence Policy of the European Union Leadership High Representative Director General of the Military Staff/Director of the Military Planning and Conduct Capability Director of the Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability Chairman of the Military Committee European Council Foreign Affairs Council Structure External Action Service Command structure on the civilian/military strategic and operational levels (Military Planning and Conduct Capability within the Military Staff, Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability, Joint Support Coordination Cell) Intelligence and Situation Centre (Club de Berne) Crisis Management and Planning Directorate Security & Defence College Agencies Defence Agency Institute for Security Studies Satellite Centre Council preparatory bodies Committee of Permanent Representatives Political and Security Committee Politico-Military Group Military Committee Committee for Civilian Aspects of Crisis Management European Commission bodies Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space Funding Defence Fund Policies Security Strategy Everything but Arms Annual Review Equipment Galileo navigation system Secure Software-defined Radio (PESCO) Decorations Service medal Medal for Extraordinary Meritorious Service Monitor mission medal Related Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) Headline Goal 2010 Military Erasmus Military Mobility (PESCO) Intelligence School (PESCO) Kortenberg building NATO relations (Berlin Plus agreement, Joint Declaration)