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TTIP: EU and US show signs of desperation, Greenpeace

26 April 2016
by greenpeace -- last modified 26 April 2016

Growing opposition to a transatlantic trade deal (TTIP) and faltering negotiations mean talks cannot be wrapped up anytime soon, said Greenpeace as EU and US politicians attempt to show renewed resolve for a deal.


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Outgoing US president Barack Obama was expected Sunday to promise progress in trade talks on the margins of a visit to Hannover in Germany, which was met by large anti-TTIP protests on Saturday. The next round of talks begins in New York on Monday.

Greenpeace trade expert Juergen Knirsch said: "This trade deal is going nowhere. With opposition to TTIP growing on both sides of the Atlantic and talks faltering, President Obama and Chancellor Merkel are growing increasingly desperate. The EU and the US haven't even laid out all their positions on the different aspects of a future deal, let alone started to negotiate compromises. Meanwhile, protests are growing and more and more people see TTIP for what it is: a threat for democracy, environmental and health standards, and social rights."

Support for TTIP is plummeting in the EU and in the US. Recent surveys conducted by YouGov for the Bertelsmann Foundation found that only 17 per cent of Germans and 18 per cent of Americans support TTIP.

The EU and the US have stated their positions on only 13 of the 25 TTIP 'chapters' up for negotiation and have steered clear of the controversial topic of trade dispute settlement through special courts. Next week's talks in New York and the subsequent 2016 negotiation round in July are not expected to substantially change this situation.

Greenpeace warns that TTIP would represent a major transfer of power from people to big business, and calls for an immediate end to negotiations.

Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organisation that acts to change attitudes and behaviour, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace. Greenpeace does not accept donations from governments, the EU, businesses or political parties.

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