Accounting for 23 percent of GDP worldwide, the United States has dominated the global economy for over 70 years. However, the US attitude towards trade policy has changed significantly since the new administration took office. President Donald Trump has removed the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), slowed the progress of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), and called into question the benefits of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
With these notable changes in policies, the United States is no longer situated at the forefront of international trade, and in its absence the European Union has stepped in.
The chlorinated chicken, together with the hormone-treated cow and investor state dispute settlement system, was responsible for killing off an EU-US trade deal, known as TTIP, in the court of public opinion. Not content with befouling EU-US trade talks, the chickens have re-emerged as obstacles in the way of the UK brokering a landmark post-Brexit pact with Washington.
Experiencing a period of economic stagnation, the European Union (EU) has started to look for different ways to enhance its economic growth rates. One solution is represented by the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). However, this solution is also one of the most debated issues within the circles of economists due to economic and social costs at stake. Among these costs, the issues of corruption and corporatism should not be neglected. Although they do not make the TTIP-related headlines, these issues are very important because they could minimize and even overcome the positive effects of trade liberalisation.
America’s web of Buy American requirements is undermining TTIP discussions, blocking EU companies from trillions of dollars worth of procurement deals.