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A second round of negotiations planned for next week on a landmark free-trade deal between the US and the European Union has been cancelled due to the US Government shutdown, the EU’s top trade official said Friday.
“Due to the ongoing furlough, the US administration will not be able to send to Brussels next week officials from the office of the US Trade Representative and US Government agencies,” EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said in a statement.
A new date has not been set for the talks, which were due to take place all next week starting Monday in the Belgian capital.
De Gucht said US officials have “promised to provide us with further information as soon as is feasible on when and how further occasions for engagement — including negotiation rounds — can be scheduled.”
The two sides had hoped to make quick progress on the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP), which would create the world’s largest free-trade area and which is expected to bring about much-needed growth and jobs.
“The cancellation ... is clearly unfortunate, but let me underline that it in no way distracts us from our overall aim of achieving an ambitious trade and investment deal between Europe and the US, which will bring real economic benefit to people on both sides of the Atlantic,” De Gucht said.
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