Four rounds of talks on the creation of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between Moldova and the European Union are set to take place this year. The technical consultations started on January 18, while the official talks will be opened at the end of February, Info-Prim Neo reports, quoting a communiqué from the Ministry of Economy. In the context of the preparations for the first round of talks, Deputy Minister of Economy Octavian Calmic said that before the negotiations, at the end of January, the Ministry of Economy will finish the fourth progress report on how the recommendations of the EU for launching the talks were implemented. “The report will synthesize all the steps taken by Moldova to implement the European Commission’s recommendations for creating the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between Moldova and the EU. In 2012 the Government of Moldova will focus on the completion of the actions aimed at successfully instituting this area,” said Octavian Calmic. The free trade agreement between Moldova and the EU envisions the gradual liberalization of trade in goods and services, the free movement of the labor force, the diminution of customs duties and technical and non-tariff barriers, the abolition of quantity-related restrictions and adjustment of Moldova’s legislation to that of the EU. Unlike the current trade regime called the Autonomous Trade Preferences, the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area Agreement will be a multilateral agreement covering an unlimited period that will provide greater export advantages and long-term predictability for business.