EU official pushes to keep trade partnership on track

   EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht is pushing for a political review of a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) by January to ensure the deal stays on track in 2014.
   The EU official met Monday with U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman ahead of the second round of TTIP negotiations, which begins next week.    
   “Our main ambition — beyond simply reducing tariffs across the board — is to make the EU and the U.S. regulatory systems more compatible and to help shape global rules in trade since this is where the economic and political benefits of a deal lie,” De  Gucht said in a statement. “Throughout this process, I will be pressing for an ambitious outcome on a number of key issues in the interests of the EU and ultimately both sides.”
   De Gucht’s primary objective is to form a set of rules to guide regulatory harmonization between the two countries and to co-develop other global standards.
   “I intend to remain actively engaged to guide negotiators towards an ambitious outcome,” De Gucht said. “The October and December negotiation rounds should establish the common foundations for an ambitious and genuinely transformative TTIP.”