Japan and the European Union said Monday the two economies had decided to launch formal trade talks. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe "decided to launch negotiations for an agreement covering political, global and sectoral cooperation and an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) / Free Trade Agreement (FTA)," the leaders said in a statement. The announcement came after the three spoke by telephone following the postponement of the summit meeting, which had been due Monday, according to a report of DPA.