Ag Policy Blog

The Senate Finance Committee has a hearing set for Wednesday on the pending U.S. trade agreement with the European Union, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership --- affectionately known as TTIP.

The scales have tipped on TTIP. As DTN's Washington Insider explains, the increasingly embarrassing revelations about the U.S. government's desire to listen to our friends is complicating the trade deal. Moreover, it doesn't appear as if anyone scheduled to testify is expert enough to explain what it means now that Canada has closed the deal on its trade talks with the EU.

From Washington Insider:

The anger expressed by several EU governments following revelations that the U.S. National Security Agency has been spying on their leaders is likely to halt discussions on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, at least temporarily.

Last week, European Parliament President Martin Schulz called for TTIP talks to be suspended until allegations of NSA spying EU governments and EU institutions are clarified. He said suspension of the TTIP was vital if the talks were to be salvaged in the long run. The spying allegations by the NSA became topic No. 1 at the EU summit after the German government accused the NSA of listening in on the mobile phone calls of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The second round of TTIP talks was due to take place in Brussels Oct. 7-12 but was cancelled because of the U.S. government shutdown. Those talks have not been rescheduled, and may not be until the spying controversy calms down.

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