EU Downplaying TTIP Failure Comments

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The European Union is downplaying comments from Germany’s economy minister over the weekend who said the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks had “de facto failed.” Germany is the EU’s biggest economy, and despite the comments, a spokesperson for the European Commission said “the ball is still rolling,” according to Reuters. The comments come after three years of negotiations failed to resolve multiple differences, including over food and environmental safety. The European Commission says it is “ready to finalize the deal by the end of the year, but not at the expense of Europe’s safety, health, social and data protection standards.” EU trade ministers will discuss the trade agreement when they next meet late next month.