Brussels, 03/02/2014 (Agence Europe) - France believes that a state to state dispute settlement mechanism is enough under the transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP).
“Well, the difficulties are starting!” states France's Minister for Trade Nicole Bricq in an interview in the newspaper La Tribune on 30 January, the day after a meeting of the French strategic committee that was set up to monitor the TTIP negotiations. European chief negotiator, Ignacio Garcia-Bercero, and director general for the European Commission's DG Trade, Jean-Luc Demarty, were invited to the meeting.
Bricq welcomed the Commission's initiatives to ensure more transparency in the negotiations via a consultative experts' group at the European level (see EUROPE 11005) and the launch of a public consultation on the protection of investments (see EUROPE 11001). She was also pleased that what is at stake in this agreement had been “well addressed” - “given its breadth, this is about 'the regulation of globalisation', to quote Demarty's words”, she said. In addition, Bricq was pleased about “the affirmation of the EU's ambition as regards social and environmental” aspects - for which the mandate given by the Council is “demanding and very ambitious”, she said. She was also pleased that “the need to defend its sensitive agricultural sectors [poultry, pork and beef] was reiterated forcefully” by the Commission.
As regards the protection of investments, which Bricq believes “essential”, she underlines, however, that France “is not in favour” of including in the agreement a settlement mechanism for disputes between the investor and state, as Bricq believes that a state to state dispute mechanism “is enough”. France is not alone on this issue - Germany is also “very reluctant”, Bricq says. The protection of investments is one of the most thorny issues in the TTIP negotiations. The Commission and US administration want to negotiate a protection clause for investors in the form of a settlement mechanism for disputes between companies and states. This worries NGOs and unions because they fear that such a mechanism might dissuade states from regulating on social and environmental issues. The legal action taken by world leading tobacco company Philip Morris against Uruguay and Australia regarding health warnings on cigarette packets is a dangerous precedent.
European Commissioner for Trade Karel De Gucht and his US counterpart, Mike Froman, will review the progress made in the TTIP negotiations after the first three rounds conducted in 2013 when they meet in Washington on 17-18 February. The European trade ministers will be briefed by the Commission at an informal meeting in Athens on 28 February. The fourth round of negotiations is scheduled in Brussels for the week of 10-14 March. European leaders Herman Van Rompuy (European Council) and José Manuel Barroso (European Commission) will take their turn, on 26 March, to review progress in the negotiations. (EH/transl.fl)