The TTIP agreement would be beneficial for the US government, but at the same time it would lead to the deterioration in consumer protection and lower social standards in the EU and the US, German politician and Vice President of the Left Party Sahra Wagenknecht stated in an exclusive interview with Sputnik.
“[…] This is not about free trade, but about lower standards of consumer protection, environmental protection and social standards on both sides of the Atlantic,” the politician said.
Wagenknecht also stressed that only German politicians support the signing of the deal, while the country’s residents largely oppose the agreement.
“I think someone wants the issue of the TTIP agreement to disappear from public view,” the politician said, referring to polls, according to which residents of those European countries where public debate on this issue is less intensive than, for example, in Germany or France, are less in favor of rejecting the contract.
“I myself have heard many times about the calculation according to which the topic should disappear from the public discourse, so that a wave of criticism would decrease and the contract could be signed a in a roundabout way,” Wagenknecht added.
He mentioned that German activists are planning to hold a large demonstration against the deal in Berlin on October 10, and added that the protest would be an important step in showing that EU citizens are still concerned about the topic, and that one needs to continue to put pressure on the German government.
