Juncker wants EU leaders confirm support for the TTIP – EuNews

Brussels – Before the final rush for groped to bring home the free trade agreement with the United States within the year, the European Commission wants to regroup the troops and make sure that everyone in Europe are fighting the same battle. Why during the summit of 28 and 29 June, Jean-Claude Juncker President will ask the Heads of State and Government, to renew to the European Commission a mandate to conduct negotiations on the TTIP. “Juncker feels that the time has come to ask the heads of state and government of the EU to have a discussion about where we are and where we want to go with these negotiations,” announced the EU executive’s spokeswoman for trade, Daniel Rosario, recalling that “the negotiations on the TTIP are advancing and are entering a crucial stage” and groped to meet the commitment to conclude the agreement by year’s end “we all have to row in the same direction.” Therefore “to the European Council of June Juncker will ask the leaders to reaffirm the mandate of the Commission to conduct these negotiations.”

“It is not the first time that the president does a check of political will among the Heads of State , it happened at the December summit last year, “recalled the spokesman of the EU Commission, Margaritis Schinas. But now Juncker “has expressed a willingness to repeat this exercise with the Heads of State and Government to allow the negotiators to advance into the final phase in the awareness of a political support of our leaders.” It is “an important political signal to get” that “the Commission will do this in the hope of a strong reaffirmation”. And if it does not arrive? If any of the leaders had decided to head back on the TTIP? For now, the EU executive wants to remain optimistic: “We do not want to speculate on an alternative scenario.”