The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been signed but not ratified and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations are in train. The former faces challenges in securing legislative ratification in the US and some other member states, buts its progress faces widespread, and growing, resistance in key European countries, with opposition coming from both within national bodies politic and wider civil societies. The success of both projects hangs in the balance. This short paper looks at the cases for and against both projects and analyses the political dynamics at play.
US and EU officials reaffirmed last week that they still aim to clinch a bilateral trade and investment pact this year, while acknowledging that much work remains in areas such as market access following the latest round of negotiations in Brussels, Belgium.