A Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) that Can Make Atlantic Citizens Proud

At a Trade Night on 19 June 2014, Steve Charnovitz shared his views on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and discussed with the audience the vision needed to create a TTIP that reaches beyond a simple trade agreement for reduced tariffs between the US and the EU. Steve Charnovitz is an Associate Professor of Law at The George Washington University Law School.

Steve Charnovitz argued that an Atlantic trade agreement could provide great benefits - but needs to be designed with a more visionary scope. There seems to be little enthusiasm for the agreement among citizens beyond the business communities on either side of the Atlantic. One reason for this lack of enchantment may be that the governments have been too narrow in their aspirations. Instead, both sides ought to strengthen their ambition for a cutting-edge, dynamic, deep integration agreement worthy of the 21st Century. The TTIP therefore needs to incorporate protections for the environment, social justice, human rights, services, labor, and tourism, among other broad topics.

Dinner Dialogue participants presented many interesting opinions regarding the attainability and implications of such an agreement (e.g., due to the political atmosphere on both sides of the Atlantic or the geopolitical implications).

Steve Charnovitz's remarks [pdf, 85 kB, English] are available for download.