Obama due in German city of Hannover to push for trade deal that would affect 800m

HANNOVER, Germany - US President Barack Obama is due in the German city of Hannover today to promote the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, known as TTIP.

The deal would create the world’s largest free trade area, with approximately 800 million people.

Obama has been pushing the deal with the EU, arguing it will create millions of jobs and increase trade by lowering tariffs and regulatory barriers between the United States and EU.

But opponents fear it would drive down wages and compromise environmental protection and labor rights.

In Hannover, some 35,000 protesters demonstrated against the deal yesterday, ahead of the US president’s visit today. In Germany, opponents fear that the TTIP could threaten the country’s  environmental and legal standards, and large protests are also planned today.

While the United States has publicly been a strong supporter of free trade, there is particular uncertainty about the TTIP in the US itself, where a poll showed that 18 percent of those questioned opposed the agreement, with only 15 percent were in favor.

Obama will use CEBIT, the world’s largest annual computer expo in Hannover, to promote the TTIP.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

from Rudaw http://ift.tt/1T6vFZ7
via Defense News