EU trade leader wants deal done this year with the US

European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said Thursday that she hopes an expansive trade deal with the United States can be completed by year’s end.

Malmström, who is in Washington for meetings with U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman, said that while the goal is to finish the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TIIP) agreement before President Obama leaves office, there won’t be any skimping on the details. 

{mosads}”I remain confident that we can come to an agreement by the end of this year if we continue the hard work,” she said at a Peterson Institute for International Economics event. 

“And if the substance is right — of course, there is no point in agreeing to a TTIP-light. It is not on the agenda.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has made similar statements saying that the negotiations must be driven by substance and not by political timing. 

Malmström argued that completing the TTIP goes well beyond just lowering tariffs, and is a reflection of the strength of the relationship between the United States and the European Union. 

“The European Union and the United States share a vision for the future of trade and that means that in a changing world where we both have less influence than in the past, trans-atlantic cooperation is the only way where we can make a difference for us and also for other parts of the world,” she said.

“That is why it also has a huge symbolic value to conclude it and that’s what we are determined to do.”

Malmström pushed back against the notion that political gridlock, including the U.S. presidential race, would stall momentum.

“So surely some people say, well that will mean that you can’t move this year,” she said. “That is wrong. Because the right kind of trade policy will, I am convinced, be supported by broad majorities in both our systems.”

Still, reaching a final agreement will be difficult, she said, although it’s “a surmountable challenge.”

Two weeks ago, negotiators completed the 12th round of talks in Brussels, which she said included detailed discussions on sustainable development and labor and environmental rights.

“We’ve come a long way with offers and proposals on the table in most areas of negotiation.”

Malmström noted “significant progress” in regulatory cooperation that would eliminate unnecessary duplication of testing and inspections, especially on cars and medicines, without lowering standards.

Negotiators have this week, for the first time, discussed offers of public procurement, she said. 

“We are not there yet but we are moving forward,” Malmström said.

Talks between the United States and the EU kicked off about two-and-half years ago.

Malmström called the TTIP a “highly significant agreement” that would merge two of the world’s largest economies, enabling the United States and the EU to influence the direction of trade around the globe.

“We need to be ambitious, we need to be creative and we have to be constructive,” Malmström said.

“That’s the approach we have been taking and will continue to take with my American counterpart Ambassador Froman and the administration. I know our American counterparts are equally committed to finalize this,” she said. 

Still, there are plenty of detractors questioning the ability of the U.S. and the EU to forge the agreement.

Besides the political climate  on both sides of the Atlantic, the EU is facing issues over migration, energy, security and a full recovery from the economic crisis.

“I don’t see the debate on trade going away, nor would I want to,” she said.

“It’s actually good that people want to be involved and discuss trade at a broader level, that is what democracy is about.”