U.S. and European Union trade officials said on Thursday they would not settle for a limited trans-Atlantic free trade deal that ignores deep divisions on agricultural products, services, public procurement and dispute resolution.
Currency signs of Japanese Yen, Euro and the U.S. dollar are seen on a
board outside a currency exchange office at Narita International
airport, near Tokyo, Japan, March 25, 2016. REUTERS/Yuya Shino
NEW YORK: U.S. and European Union trade officials said on
Thursday they would not settle for a limited trans-Atlantic free trade
deal that ignores deep divisions on agricultural products, services,
public procurement and dispute resolution.
In separate briefings during the latest negotiating round in
New York, the U.S. and EU officials said they would push for a
comprehensive Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or T-TIP,
before U.S. President Barack Obama leaves office in January.
"We are not going to shoot for or accept a 'T-TIP light,' a
U.S. Trade Representative official said on condition of anonymity
because of the sensitivity of the talks.
"It has to be comprehensive, it has to be ambitious and we
do think we have the time that we need this year to complete such an
ambitious deal," the official added.
But the U.S. officials and their European counterparts said
bridging gaps would take a lot of work and that progress this week had
centered mainly on non-controversial technical language. They are trying
to lay the groundwork to have all but the thorniest problems solved by
the autumn.
Among the deepest divides concern Europe's food safety rules
that exclude American beef raised with hormones, genetically modified
foods and Europe's many local food naming rules, such as for asiago and
feta cheeses.
U.S. negotiators have complained those rules have fueled a
US$12 billion annual food trade deficit with the EU, US$1 billion in
cheese alone.
Teamsters union legislative representative Michael Dolan
told a forum for industry, labor and other trade stakeholders on Tuesday
that he believed the two sides were too entrenched on some key issues
and that those should be excluded. He recommended leaving out the food
safety standards and naming rules, known as "geographical indications."
Similarly, he said a deal should exclude European demands
for greater access to U.S. federal, state and local government
procurement, which often carries "buy American" or local content
standards.
"Agree to disagree on government procurement," Dolan said. "Geographic indications? Not on the menu."
An EU official told reporters that European negotiators were
disappointed in the latest U.S. procurement offer but were determined
to keep working toward a deal.
"We are obviously working hard to see where we can try to
conclude these negotiations before the change of administration, without
in any way compromising the substance of this agreement," the official
said. "We don't believe in a 'TTIP light.'"
(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Peter Cooney)
- Reuters
US, EU officials say they will not settle for limited trade deal
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