TTIP Action aggregates the latest news and best analysis from across the United States and European Union on the ongoing negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
Negotiators Meet for the Fifth Round of TTIP Talks
US and EU teams are meeting this week across the Potomac River in Arlington, Virginia for the 5th round of negotiations. Teams responsible for regulatory coherence, intellectual property rights, labor, and certain sectoral regulatory areas began their work on Monday. Additional groups will begin work today, including those focused on services, investment protection, technical barriers to trade, agricultural market access, and rules of origin.
On behalf of the TTIP team at the Atlantic Council, we would like to wish both negotiating teams the best of luck as they move forward over the course of the week!
News
EU-US Clash over Financial Services in TTIP
The inclusion of financial services regulatory cooperation in TTIP continues to be a point of major contention between the US and EU. Last week, EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said that his delegation was still pushing hard for finance to be included, despite the opposition of the US Treasury Department. De Gucht underlined that the time is now to agree on a common approach to avoid discrepancies in the future, especially when considering the effects of transatlantic divergences that helped lead to the financial crisis. (EurActiv)
TTIP Would Strengthen US and EU Economies
Today’s Albuquerque Journal emphasizes that TTIP presents an excellent opportunity for the United States to align itself with like-minded countries to address ‘myriad economic, environmental and security issues.’ They write that US leadership should be strong in ensuring the completion of a comprehensive TTIP agreement. The editorial comes at the heels of EU Ambassador Vale de Almeida’s visit to New Mexico last week. (Albuquerque Journal).
Recent Analysis
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Investor-State Dispute Settlement FAQs
The United Kingdom’s (UK) Department for Business Innovation and Skills published an excellent and informative two-page bulletin of facts and statistics about the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism. The bulletin explains the fundamentals of the ISDS mechanism, outlines why it should be included in TTIP, and defines its implications for British (and international) businesses. See the bulletin here.
America’s Mega-Regional Trade Diplomacy: Comparing TPP and TTIP
Daniel Hamilton’s recent journal article for the The International Spectator: Italian Journal of International Affairs presents an argument that the two current mega-regional trade agreements being negotiated-TTIP and the Trans-Pacific Partnership-represents a shift in the US’s foreign economic policy in the context of stalled multilateral negotiations in the Doha Round. Since Washington is the only party to both agreements, this new trade agenda represents a path forward to strengthened US global economic leadership in partnership with like-minded allies. (The International Spectator)
TTIP: A Transatlantic Bridge for Worldwide Gains
Lucian Cernat And Nuno Sousa of the Ifo Institute argue that mega-regional trade agreements like TTIP and the Trans-Pacific Partnership represent stepping stones which will eventually strengthen the multilateral framework. They argue further however, that positive spillover effects will only come to fruition if the US and EU encourage and allow third-countries market access and the opportunity to eventually join these new agreements. (Ifo Institute – Center for Economic Studies)
IPRIS TTIP Review
The Portuguese Institute for International Relations and Security (IRPRIS), recently released its first TTIP review. One article, authored by Portuguese Secretary of State for European Affairs Bruno Maçães argues that via TTIP the EU and the United States have the opportunity to move beyond mere affirmation of their shared constitutional principles, and move toward a ‘transatlantic regulatory structure’ which reinforces shared values and our democratic systems. He argues that TTIP presents an opportunity to shape global regulatory patterns by finding joint principles between the world’s two largest economies. The full review is available online here.
Interview with Patrick Low, Vice President of Research, Fung Global Institute
Ahead of the conference Global Trade A Trade System for the 21st Century at Chatham House, Patrick Low, Vice President of Research for the Fung Global Institute, discusses how successful regional preferential trade agreements can be integrated into a multilateral framework at the WTO-level. The full interview is available here.
Upcoming Events
Fifth Round of TTIP Negotiations – May 19-23, Washington, DC and Arlington, VA
oriGIn meeting in Washington, DC on “TTIP: Expectations of GI producers from the two sides of the Atlantic” – May 20, Washington – More Information
Transatlantic Economy 2014: Annual Survey of Jobs, Trade, and Investment between the US and Europe with Senator Murphy (D-CT), Chair, Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe – May 20, Washington, DC – More information
Celebrate Europe Month / TTIP – May 22, Atlanta, Georgia – More information
European Union Election Results: Implications for the US – May 28, Washington DC – More information
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) Agreement: Facts and Opportunities for Business in Europe and Spain – June 2, Madrid, Spain (More information available in Spanish here)
Global Trade: A Trade System for the 21st Century – June 9-10, London – More information