Gabriel’s ministry is not directly involved in talks with the United States over the TTIP because trade agreements are negotiated at the European Union level, AP added.
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Germany’s Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel confirmed that the negotiations between the parties had failed, but he said that “nobody is really admitting it”.
Germany’s Vice Chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel, told ZDF on Sunday that the three years and 16-rounds negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) have failed.
Sigmar Gabriel said Britain cannot keep the “nice things” about Europe without taking any responsibility.
Brexit is bad but it won’t hurt us as much economically as some fear – it’s more of a psychological problem and it’s a huge problem politically.
Free trade negotiations between the European Union and the United States have fallen apart in recent weeks with Europe reticent to open its agricultural industry to low-priced American “frankenfruits” in addition to concerns over the depletion of labor standards and worries that an unelected cabal will be able to dictate policy over the sovereign objections of participating countries.
France’s Prime Minister Manuel Valls has said it would be “impossible” for the two sides to conclude negotiations on a trade deal by the end of 2016.
“We Europeans can not subject ourselves to American demands, there’s no movement there”, Gabriel said.
In the USA, presidential hopeful Donald Trump has repeatedly spoken out against free trade, including the long-established North American Free Trade Agreement, which opened up trade with Canada and Mexico in the 1990s.
“At the last (summit), precisely because we were entering this hard and complex stage, President Juncker addressed his counterparts, checking whether there was political backing to conclude the deal by the end of the year”, Schinas said.
Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan tweeted: “Confirmation that US-EU trade talks “have failed”.
The UK’s Brexit vote also appears not to have helped matters, essentially removing one of the US’ closest allies and supporters from the talks.
The issue of trade with the U.S. featured prominently in the European Union referendum campaign and was the subject of a high-profile intervention by president Barack Obama.
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Meanwhile Britain’s vote to leave the European Union removes one of the bloc’s strongest trade advocates in Europe, as the United Kingdom frequently acts as a counterweight to some of the bloc’s more protectionist countries.
