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Trans-Atlantic trade talks not overshadowed by NSA scandal

Rainman05

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Trans-Atlantic trade talks not overshadowed by NSA scandal | World | DW.DE | 13.07.2013

As talks on the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership began this week in Washington, a second topic loomed large: US intelligence programs. Germany wanted to make sure the issue didn't fade into the background.
As EU and US delegations met in Washington for the first week-long round of negotiations on a proposed shared trade area, German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich was just a few hundred meters away in the White House for talks about controversial US surveillance programs.

"Apparently the topic of the surveillance programs did not play a big role. The delegations got into the matters at hand relatively quickly," the economist said. He believes that both delegations have developed a degree of basic trust in one another that will ease the upcoming negotiations.
Surveillance and data trade
How to handle private data is, however, one of the most difficult and complex topics to work through in negotiations. On this point, the two continents have widely divergent policies. Unlike in the US, in Europe consumers must give explicit permission for their data to be used in additional contexts.
Even beyond the current debate about the US National Security Agency's intelligence gathering, a number of political observers and business leaders distrust the idea behind TTIP. That's true on both sides of the Atlantic.
Much has been said about the benefits of a shared economic and trade zone between the two continents. And that is true in Washington, as well, where the talk among both delegates and many industry representatives is of millions of new jobs, a strong boost to the economy as well as greater efficiency.

Read it all in the link. I just put in snips from the article which I found to be most interesting.

I will begin by saying that I dislike the EU as a bureaucratic, internal political system. It has powers that can endanger national sovereignty and that is a problem.
However. The EU as a united diplomatic front for making deals with foreign nations is a desirable thing. So I would very much like to see this deal pass through. Ofc, not just "pass through" regardless what it is. I like the idea. Let's see what they come up with by the end of 2014. Once we see what the terms are, we can discuss if it's a good idea or a bad idea.

For a look at the downsides of this, or rather, possible concerns:
http://www.dw.de/opinion-not-everyone-wins-with-eu-us-free-trade/a-16892973
 
So this whole thing got me interested.

Free trade or fair game? Europe onto a loser in US trade talks? | euronews, u talk

This is a link to a 2min long video on the issue explaining the differences between how the EU and the USA will enter these trade talks. It also ends with a disparaging remarks that it is an unfair deal for the EU. Ofc, it says that it's an unfair deal because the EU is not like the USA. It implies that if the EU were more expanded and more EU wide regulations would exist, rather than each country having its own regulations regarding this and that, the EU would be in a better position. So that means expanding the powers of the EU within the EU, something I do not agree with.

Anyway. Food for thought.
 
I hope that the EU takes small footsteps. EU-US deals tend to heavily favor the American's and that is my biggest problem with these talks... will we just repeat the past again?

For example, American airlines are allowed to fly between European countries. They are allowed to own European airlines. European airlines are not allowed to own American airlines nor fly between US cities.. And that is a rather recent agreement.

As for the EU gaining more "power" because of this... I dont see how and especially considering all 28 countries need to agree on such changes.. doubt it.

I think the big issue here, is that it will be the US that has to give the most, and that is usually not something the US likes to do.
 
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