Source: European Commission Subject: Press Conference on 10 th TTIP negotiation round Date: July 17 2015 Following the conclusion of the 10 th TTIP negotiation round today in Brussels, the Chief negotiators, Ignacio Garcia Bercero and Dan Mullaney held a joint press conference to explain how the week had progressed. Please find a summary of the press conference below: Ignacio Garcia Bercero, EU Chief Negotiator, began by saying that the tenth round of negotiations has been concluded. They have taken place at an important moment as in June, the leaders of the G7 called upon the EU and the US to intensify the TTIP discussions. The European Parliament has also strongly supported the negotiations. It underlined that only a comprehensive, balanced and ambitious agreement would be accepted by the Parliament. The USA also adopted the TPA in June which has also pushed forward work. This week, the round has been about progressing in all areas including: Market access an important milestone was reached as both sides tabled services offers. Services are a key area for the deal and an ambitious outcome must be found that goes beyond what exists in existing agreements. He stressed that both services revised offers reflect the March statements on public services. TTIP will preserve the right of states to choose how public services are offered. He explained that public procurement was not discussed, but this is a priority. The objective on public procurement is to enhance access to government procurement opportunities at all levels on an equal basis. Regulatory cooperation there is significant convergence between the EU and the US and an acceptance that agreement on five elements should be found: Good regulatory chapters Technical barriers to trade Sanitary matters A framework for regulatory cooperation in the future Greater regulatory cooperation in nine sectors. As an example, he then provided further information concerning the progress made on cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector and he noted that discussions have seen good progress. Regulators from both sides have reviewed progress on good manufacturing practices. Pharmaceutical products on the market must be produced to the highest possible standards. The continuing negotiations will determine what outcome can be found. Some concrete results have already been achieved including compatible regulations on the development of biosimilar medicines. This is very important for the generic sector. Biosimilar medicines produced in the EU should be seen as acceptable for the US market. He explained that nothing done in the regulatory areas will reduce regulatory standards. These will be upheld and even enforced. Regulatory cooperation will be led by the regulators themselves. Trade Rules both the EU and the USA believe that significant benefits can be achieved. This should help with the development of global rules. Sustainable development was not discussed this week as an ambition proposal is still being finalised. This should be presented to the USA in December. In other rules areas, ISDS and energy, raw materials and SMEs were all discussed this week. The SME chapter is very innovative and important
within the agreement. SMEs stand to gain greatly from TTIP through numerous fashions. TTIP should make life for SMEs easier. He then said that the civil society exchange of views was very important this week. Some organisations put forward interesting ideas which will be taken into account. The Commission is also listening to concerns expressed by stakeholders. Dan Mullaney, US Chief Negotiator, agreed that the discussions this week have received a shot in the arm from recent decisions taken. Both sides now have clear guidance to complete TTIP and work this week has focused on accelerating progress. A large amount of work requires to be done. The tabling of second market access offers for services is a very important point. Much remains to be done in this area, but good progress was made. On regulatory coherence, he said that proposals for enhanced cooperation between regulators and the examination of good regulatory practices were also discussed. The goal in the sectoral discussions is to agree steps that lead to cost savings and regulatory efficiency whilst protecting high standards. The debate on customs focused on preventing delays at borders and new standards and practices for customs would be greatly beneficial. In the negotiating group, there is a group dedicated to SMEs. This week, this group looked at providing user-friendly information on trade requirements and ways to support SME development including IPR protection. He stressed that work has focussed on accelerating progress on the deal in general. Tariff reduction will form a future priority. The USA believes that TTIP should eliminate all tariffs. He reiterated that the stakeholder consultations are a very valuable aspect of the process. He was keen to stress that TTIP will not undermine public services. He concluded by saying that TTIP is an opportunity to make the transatlantic relationship an even stronger driver of prosperity. TTIP can also show that trade can flourish alongside strong employment and environmental protection. TTIP could be concluded under the Obama Presidency, but this would require a lot of work. A journalist asked about the perception of the services market access offers. Were they positive? She also asked about public procurement and asked if there will be progress on this by the end of the year. She finally asked about the US reaction to the Malmstrom proposal on ISDS. Ignacio Garcia Bercero said that the services offers were ambitious and there have been good discussions on the offers. It is now necessary to see how to move forward. Public procurement is an important part of the negotiations and work will need to be intensified on this. There was no discussion on ISDS this week. Dan Mullaney noted that the USA is following the Commission ISDS debate. The USA is awaiting the proposal, before beginning talks on this. The mood on services offers was positive this week. On public procurement, he explained that increasing market access will be looked at in detail. Progress needs to be made. A journalist from Reuters noted that there has been mention of a potential political skeleton deal by next Summer. He asked for a timeline of when this could be possible. Ignacio Garcia Bercero said that all necessary efforts to conclude the deal with the Obama administration will be made. The G7 has indicated that an outline of TTIP should be possible by the end of the year, but a definitive timetable is impossible to establish. Work will be intensified, but much remains to be done. Dan Mullaney agreed on the need to work quickly. The substance of the agreement is however very important. There is a window of opportunity under the current Presidency.
A journalist asked about services and what has changed in the revised offers. When will the second offer on tariffs be ready? When will sustainable development be dealt with?
Ignacio Garcia Bercero said that the new offer is more ambitious and broader in that it includes e-commerce. On sustainable development, the proposals will be sent to the USA in September. Dan Mullaney said that significant obligations need to be agreed on services. The two sides are closer together on services. On tariffs, he said that elimination is an important goal, but the exact timing of the offer is not yet known. On sustainable development, he said that the discussions could perhaps take place in the next round. A journalist asked what progress was made on chemicals, textiles and cosmetics. Will the Commission release any new documents in the coming weeks? Ignacio Garcia Bercero said that there were good discussions on a number of chemical pilot projects. There will be nothing in contradiction to the respective regulatory frameworks, but regulators should be able to share information. On cosmetics, he noted that the regulatory regimes are very different and this makes it very challenging. The two sides are still looking at the right way forward, but more needs to be done. On textiles, he said that there were good discussions on labelling and standards on flammability. Dan Mullaney said that in the areas of chemicals and cosmetics, there needs to be flexibility when looking for opportunities to find cost savings where the regulatory regimes differ so much. Other ways asides from regulatory convergence will need to be found to achieve cost efficiencies in these areas. A journalist asked about energy and what was discussed on this. During the last round, there was apparently a problem concerning the transit of oil and gas across third countries, but there are no countries between them. Ignacio Garcia Bercero explained that there were two days of discussions on energy and raw materials. Issues relating to investment, renewables and energy efficiency were all looked at. For the Commission, this is an issue of the EU and USA helping to create global rules for the 21 st century. Transit can also be discussed. Dan Mullaney noted that this is a large subject as it cuts across numerous areas. Each issue was looked at in turn to see if it can or should be addressed in a trade agreement. A journalist asked about services. The financial services industry in the EU has been critical of the failure of the US to make a state level offer. What about audiovisual and maritime services? He also asked about energy and noted that there has been criticism from environmental groups that the EU is sending a contradictory message in the run up to the Paris conference when it calls for a US relaxation on oil and gas exports. Dan Mullaney noted that market access offers on financial services at all levels was proposed by the USA. Regulatory cooperation on financial services could however happen in other fora. Services in the aviation sector were discussed this week, but there is already the Open Skies agreement. Concerning telecommunications, he said that a full discussion on the range of services needs to be held. There is no link between audiovisual services and maritime services. The sensitivities of parties on audiovisual services could be taken into account whilst not preventing trade. Ignacio Garcia Bercero explained that audiovisual services cannot be discussed according to the Commission mandate. On the energy question, he said that restrictions on US exports of gas and oil cannot be seen as protecting the environment. It could actually reduce the amount of coal exports. A journalist asked about the stakeholders that they spoke to.
Ignacio Garcia Bercero explained that he met with representatives from SMEs and a broad range of stakeholders. The Commission has a clear policy of an open door. Every European Group can meet with him to discuss TTIP. He would be very happy to meet with the Corporate Europe Observatory. Dan Mullaney noted that around 400 stakeholders attended the Q&A this week. The US door is also open to anyone with questions about TTIP. A journalist asked about the European Parliament resolution that drafted some red lines on ISDS. Will the Parliament resolution be a major obstacle? Ignacio Garcia Bercero explained that the Parliament message was very clear. ISDS needs to be reformed and the Commission is aiming to put forward a new type of proposal. Strong investor protection which guarantees the right to regulate is important. Dan Mullaney argued that the Parliament report is a strong endorsement of TTIP. The USA understands many of the issues raised on ISDS and has actually held consultations on this in the past. The US team is looking forward to the proposal from the Commission on this. A journalist asked if the changes brought in by the Commission on transparency has altered the atmosphere of the talks. Dan Mullaney said that efforts to inform the public about the ambition of TTIP have made progress. Ignacio Garcia Bercero said that the transparency has had a positive impact on negotiations. The public need to know what the Commission is aiming to achieve in the negotiations.