Friday

1st Dec 2023

TTIP's future in Trump's hands

  • Malmstrom argued that the trade policy should remain an EU competence, despite its legitimacy problem (Photo: European Commission)

It is up to the new American administration to decide if they want to continue the EU-US free trade talks, EU officials said on Wednesday (9 November), highlighting the deep uncertainty about US president-elect Donald Trump's policies.

"We frankly don't know," EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem said about the future of the TTIP talks.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

She told members of the European Parliament's trade committee that she would assess by the end of the year with the member states and the current US administration where the negotiations stand, and then there will be a pause in discussions.

The Trump administration will come to power in January. Malmstroem said it was up to them to decide how long this pause will last.

Jyrki Katainen, the commission's vice-president for competitiveness acknowledged that during his campaign Donald Trump made "statements which can be interpreted as being against free trade".

But the Finnish commissioner argued that there is still lots of interest for TTIP among the administration, the authorities, and the business sector in the US.

"The transatlantic relationship has lots of values, I really don't believe that either side would like to jeopardise the transatlantic relationship.
 It's not a question of persons. We are representating the same value basis, together with the Americans," Katainen said.

He conceded that "the only thing that is sure now is uncertainty".

"We just have to keep calm and wait when we start getting answers from the administration and the president," Katainen said.

US officials seemed to have equally vague ideas about TTIP's fate.

US ambassador to the EU, Anthony L. Gardner told journalists on Wednesday that TTIP remains important for strategic and political reasons.

"But there is no denying trade deals will be difficult to do in this atmosphere," he said, adding the EU and the US share a challenge on how to convince people to see globalisation and free trade as a source of opportunity, not just a risk.

Legitimacy problem

At a EU parliament's trade policy event, Bernd Lange, chairman of the EP's trade committee warned that open trade policy is not something Europeans can take for granted anymore.

"There is a feeling that something uncontrollable is happening, people will be afraid of it and start opposing it. We have to better control globalisation," he said, adding that the democratic structures are there to make the citizens' voices heard, they "just need to be filled with life".

Malmstroem told MEPs the trade policy has a legitimacy problem, and it can only benefit European citizens if they have trust in it.

She said people need to feel they can influence the content of the trade deals, and the EU needs to tackle the fears associated with free trade deals.

Malmstroem once again praised Ceta, the EU's trade agreement with Canada, for its labour and enviromental protection standards, and for its improvements in the investor protection system.

"We want to have an effective, transparent, responsible, value based trade policy," she added, pointing out that 31 million jobs in Europe depend on exports, therefore the EU cannot afford to be protectionist.

She argued that the reason for job losses - one of the key concerns of opponents of free trade - are not trade deals, but rather technology and automatisation.

She added that national governments also have responsibility to help citizens adapting to globalisation.

But Malmstroem warned against member states reclaiming some trade purviews from the union level, as the policy has been an exclusively EU power in the last 40 years.

"It would be devastating for the EU if the national governments would retake some trade competencies, that would be bad for wealth and the quality of trade agreements," she said.

Ceta failure deepens EU trade crisis

Canada said on Friday that the free-trade agreement with the EU had failed and that the bloc was "not capable" of concluding agreements.

EU-Canada trade deal faces final hurdles

EU states could sign off the Canada-EU trade deal next week, if the consitutional court in Germany, or a Belgian regional parliament does not stop them.

Opinion

Will EU climate chief Hoekstra come clean before COP28?

As the new EU climate commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, heads to COP28, three senior MEPs question his ties to the fossil-fuel industry — and call for him to disclose all his ties while working for 11 years for McKinsey.

Latest News

  1. Israel recalls ambassador to Spain in new diplomatic spat
  2. Migrant return bill 'obstructed' as EU states mull new position
  3. Paris and Berlin key to including rape in gender-violence directive
  4. What are the big money debates at COP28 UN climate summit?
  5. 'Pay or okay?' — Facebook & Instagram vs the EU
  6. EU offers Turkey upgrade, as Sweden nears Nato entry
  7. Russia loses seat on board of chemical weapons watchdog
  8. Finland's closure of Russia border likely violates asylum law

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  3. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  4. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?
  5. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsThis autumn Europalia arts festival is all about GEORGIA!
  6. UNOPSFostering health system resilience in fragile and conflict-affected countries

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. European Citizen's InitiativeThe European Commission launches the ‘ImagineEU’ competition for secondary school students in the EU.
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersThe Nordic Region is stepping up its efforts to reduce food waste
  3. UNOPSUNOPS begins works under EU-funded project to repair schools in Ukraine
  4. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsGeorgia effectively prevents sanctions evasion against Russia – confirm EU, UK, USA
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersGlobal interest in the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations – here are the speakers for the launch
  6. Nordic Council of Ministers20 June: Launch of the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us