The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) should be
a “mixed” agreement and, therefore, be ratified by national
institutions, according to Greece’s economy minister. EurActiv Greece reports.
Speaking at a conference on Wednesday (13 January) co-organized by VouliWatch and The Press Project, Greek Minister of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism, Giorgos Stathakis, explained his government's position on TTIP.
Before being in government in January 2015, the leftist Syriza party had been suspicious of TTIP.
Georgios Katrougkalos, the then-deputy minister for administrative reform, had told EurActiv Greece that “Athens will use its veto to kill the proposed trade pact.”
But in August 2015, the Syriza party was split, as far-left rebels who opposed Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s bailout deal with Europe decided to form a new movement.
Since then, the Syriza-led government has adopted a more moderate tone on the TTIP agreement.
Stathakis noted that at the beginning, the trade agreement “was unimaginable, not transparent and inaccessible”.
He added that there was also the “shock” idea, according to which the deal should be sealed in record time “before any discussion took place”.
But the framework of TTIP negotiations has changed. He said that now, the negotiations are more accessible.
“The right of states to legislate and to change the law for the protection of public health, safety or the environment, and consumer protection, is ensured,” Stathakis underlined.
The Greek minister also stressed that the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism (ISDS), which has triggered strong reactions across Europe, was replaced by a normal court of international authority, with “permanent features and function codes”.
Read more: Athens says TTIP should be ratified by national parliaments | EurActiv
Speaking at a conference on Wednesday (13 January) co-organized by VouliWatch and The Press Project, Greek Minister of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism, Giorgos Stathakis, explained his government's position on TTIP.
Before being in government in January 2015, the leftist Syriza party had been suspicious of TTIP.
Georgios Katrougkalos, the then-deputy minister for administrative reform, had told EurActiv Greece that “Athens will use its veto to kill the proposed trade pact.”
But in August 2015, the Syriza party was split, as far-left rebels who opposed Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s bailout deal with Europe decided to form a new movement.
Since then, the Syriza-led government has adopted a more moderate tone on the TTIP agreement.
Stathakis noted that at the beginning, the trade agreement “was unimaginable, not transparent and inaccessible”.
He added that there was also the “shock” idea, according to which the deal should be sealed in record time “before any discussion took place”.
But the framework of TTIP negotiations has changed. He said that now, the negotiations are more accessible.
“The right of states to legislate and to change the law for the protection of public health, safety or the environment, and consumer protection, is ensured,” Stathakis underlined.
The Greek minister also stressed that the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism (ISDS), which has triggered strong reactions across Europe, was replaced by a normal court of international authority, with “permanent features and function codes”.
Read more: Athens says TTIP should be ratified by national parliaments | EurActiv
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