The U.S. and the European Union have been negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) for three years and both had sought to conclude talks this year, but differences remain.
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German economy minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Sunday that TTIP was “finished”, as the two parties had failed to agree on a single point in the 27 negotiation chapters.
But French junior trade minister Matthias Fekl said there was “no more political support in France” for the talks because United States negotiators were offering “nothing or just crumbs”.
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Treaty (TTIP) reportedly hangs in the balance after a senior figure in the German Government suggested that the talks had reached an unbridgeable impasse.
EU Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas stressed progress was being made.
President Francois Hollande on Tuesday appeared to endorse Fekl’s position, telling ambassadors that he could not back a deal by that deadline. The TTIP draft has been kept under wraps – which is not unusual for big trade agreements.
France has not been an enthusiastic supporter of TTIP for some time, saying it handed too many concessions to the USA while Europe stood to get little in return.
“That is not how you negotiate between equals and allies”, he said, adding that it was not the European Union commission’s fault.
TTIP negotiations have been ongoing since 2013 in an effort to establish a massive free trade zone that would eliminate many tariffs but which critics contend would jeopardize American businesses.
Brussels and Washington are still at odds over several critical issues at current stage although both sides are committed to concluding the deal by the end of this year before US President Barack Obama leaves office in January.
Figures were eventually even produced by the Ministry of Industry and Trade that around one percent of GDP, or around 900 million dollars a year, could be the maximal Czech benefit from the deal it the most ambitious version was signed and realized.
Many in Europe are also anxious the deal could lead to a watering down of Europe’s existing regulations on food safety and environmental protection, which are often a lot stricter than in the U.S.
In Europe, politicians in the bloc’s biggest economic powers, France and Germany, find themselves under fire for supporting negotiations with the U.S. Marine Le Pen, the head of France’s right-wing National Front party, has repeatedly attacked President Franç ois Hollande for backing the talks.
She said the aim was still to conclude a deal under the Obama presidency, adding: “And if that is not possible it makes sense to make as much progress as possible”.
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In Austria, public opposition is strong due to concerns the agreement might lower food safety standards and threaten European business.
