Brussels, 21/01/2013 (Agence Europe) - Berlin has recommended taking advantage of the current window of opportunity to launch transatlantic negotiations.
In an open letter in the daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung dated 19 January, with the title “The time has come”, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle calls on the EU to make more rapid progress towards the negotiation of a free-trade agreement with the United States, describing the current period as most conducive. “The window of opportunity is wide open (…). It is time to focus on what brings us together and offers us enormous additional growth potential: the close intertwining of the economic zones and financial markets”, he states. Westerwelle highlights the need to take advantage of a highly favourable period in the political climate of early 2013, with the start of the second term in office for Barack Obama - which officially started on 20 January - the Irish Presidency of the EU and the British Presidency of the G8. The German foreign minister said that he hoped to see a decisive political signal to this effect at the European Council of 7 and 8 February, and the preparation of the negotiation mandate by the Irish Presidency before the summer.
De Gucht, adding value without calling society's choices into question. Initially scheduled for late 2012, the recommendations of the working group, co-chaired by Commissioner Karel De Gucht and the American Trade Representative Ron Kirk, should be put to the outgoing Obama cabinet in early February. “I hope to complete our preparatory work with my American counterpart in the next few weeks”, De Gucht confirmed on 16 January. The interim recommendations submitted in June 2012 clearly delimited the scope of the future negotiations, stressing a broad range of options for the expansion of trade and transatlantic investment, including removing customs duty, the liberalisation of services, access to public procurement, regulatory convergence and also competition rules, the environment and intellectual property. “The negotiations will not be easy. Customs duties between our economies are already very low. The stakes feature mainly in regulatory issues. There is a potential for convergence between our two models, which should add value to all without calling into question the fundamental choices of society”, the commissioner told the French parliament last week. “There can be no doubt as to the potential of this agreement. Our relationship already comprises 15 million jobs, €2 billion in trade every day and more than €2,000 billion of investment in both directions”, he stressed.
Bilateral trade was worth nearly €445 billion in 2011, with the EU exporting €260 billion worth to the United States and importing more than €184 billion. (EH/transl.fl)