The European Union held its first round of free trade negotiations with Thailand on Monday, a spokesman for the bloc confirmed. "The first round of talks with Thailand is starting today in Brussels," said John Clancy, a spokesman for EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra agreed to the negotiations during a meeting in Brussels in March, dpa reported. Trade between EU and Thailand amounted to more than 30 billion euros (39 billion dollars) in 2012, according to European Commission figures.