The Greens/EFA group has published an open letter to US president Barack Obama on the EU-US Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations on the occasion of his visit to Europe. The letter highlights concerns about the negotiations and their implications on regulations and standards, including controversial investor protection provisions. The full text can be accessed at http://www.greens-efa.eu/open-letter-to-president-obama-15478.html

Commenting on the open letter, vice-president and trade spokesperson of the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament, Ska Keller said:

"There is a host of legitimate reasons why citizens on both sides of the Atlantic are opposed to the controversial TTIP agreement: extra-judicial tribunals, which undermine democracy; 'regulatory cooperation', which aims to scale back standards and rules, with negative implications for the consumers. Instead of tailoring an agreement to the interests of multinationals, President Obama and EU leaders should be focusing on ensuring globalisation is a fair and just development. In our letter, we are calling for a strong and progressive transatlantic alliance, which is possible without TTIP."

Richard More O'Ferrall,

Press and media officer,

Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament

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