At the meeting with European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström today, the chairpersons of the European Union Affairs Committees of the parliaments of the Baltic States and Poland expressed support for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

Chairman of the European Union Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Kalle Palling said that Estonia supported concluding the free trade agreement with the US. Palling referred to the policy brief of the European Council on Foreign Relations, according to which Estonia would have the largest potential gain from TTIP. “Leaders of the European Union should not give up continuing the negotiations on TTIP rashly,” Palling said.

“We call all parties to constructive cooperation in order to achieve the end result that would be acceptable to everybody,” Palling said. “We support the transparency of the negotiations, because the interest of the public in this agreement is great, and we urge the governments of the Member States to explain the public how important and useful this agreement would be.”

Concluding of the free trade agreement would help increase international competitiveness and economic growth. It would raise employment in the European Union and, in the end, consumers would only benefit from it, Palling explained.

Palling added that it was important to cooperate with the parliaments of the Member States that have a decisive role in ratification of the agreement. “Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland express unwavering support for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and acknowledge the contribution of the European Commission in the negotiations with the United States of America,” the joint statement made today in Tallinn says.

The statement emphasises that in the changed security situation, the partnership agreement would also be a practical example of transatlantic cooperation and a confirmation of the good allied relations between the EU and the USA.

Commissioner Malmström thanked for the support and assured that the negotiations for concluding the free trade agreement, which have been going on for three years, would continue. According to her, there has been considerable progress in many issues, but the most complicated chapters have inevitably remained for the end of the negotiations.

The chairpersons of the European Union Affairs Committees of the parliaments of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, who gathered in Tallinn today, also met with Prime Minister of Estonia Taavi Rõivas and spoke about Brexit with him. The meeting in the morning focused on the relations between the European Union and Russia.

Photos of the meeting.

Riigikogu Press Service
Epp-Mare Kukemelk
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