European Institute

On October 5, 2015, The Honorable Stefan Selig, U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade offered his assessment of the current status the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations. Rebuffing concerns that the talks had reached an impasse, Under Secretary Selig pointed out that the most complicated agreements are always marathons, not sprints, and that negotiators are currently tackling specifics in some of the toughest chapters, notably standards and regulations. Neither the US nor the EU, he added, can achieve long term economic growth, that  is both robust and sustainable, without optimizing the transatlantic trade partnership.  “TTIP is not ONLY an opportunity to reinforce the Trans-Atlantic relationship. It is an opportunity to reinforce the very principles that this relationship were built upon.”

Click here to read Under Secretary Selig's remarks.