MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Monday, another round of talks between the United States and the European Union on the TTIP deal, aimed at reducing barriers to trade in goods and services between Europe and North America, started in New York. The same day, US President Barack Obama said, while on a visit to Germany, that TTIP should be finalized by the end of this year.
"I think there will be no Transatlantic Agreement…this agreement will not be secured, no one will vote for it because in all European countries the increasing amount of lawmakers worry, because we see that the proposed deal is not equal… I will say frankly Obama's statement is counter-productive," Thierry Mariani said when asked to comment on Obama saying TTIP would be signed before the end of his term.
According to the lawmaker, he personally is also "against this deal."
"[US presidential hopefuls Hillary] Clinton or [Donald] Trump are against this agreement, with every day we arrive to the conclusion that this deal will not be implemented," Mariani added.
TTIP has drawn criticism from the public for the lack of transparency in its negotiations and the power it would give to international corporations. It has also been slammed for bypassing the framework of the World Trade Organization and excluding BRICS countries, while leaked details of the deal show that it might undermine environmental, health, safety and labor standards.