Trading words to kickstart deal

AMERICAN businesses are urging the Taoiseach to kickstart negotiations on a free trade agreement between the US and EU while Ireland holds the presidency.

The head of the US Chamber of Commerce, Thomas Donohue, said there is a “friendship value” to starting talks on the long-awaited agreement while Ireland holds the reins.

But he dismissed suggestions from a source close to French President François Hollande, who hinted to this newspaper in January that Ireland’s “significant relationship with the Americans” might be used to work in the interest of the US and not Europe.

Mr Donohue — one of the most powerful corporate lobbyists inthe US — has held a number of meetings with government officials in Dublin in recent days.

He said that “as long as the Taoiseach has the presidency, he will be in the position to move this thing forward at top speed”.

His visit to Ireland coincided with a gathering in Dublin of EU trade ministers, who said talks would get under way on what would be the world’s biggest trade agreement, one which would provide an economic stimulus for both the EU and US. The Government is hoping to formally launch talks in June, before it hands over the six-month rotating presidency.

Mr Donohue praised Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who “really pushed it” and “has been very persuasive in getting everybody to look at the benefits”.

But he was eager to stress that there should be no delay in starting the talks, which could last up to two years.

“You can’t achieve anything until you start something.

“Holding the EU presidency gives you some leverage to move this along more quickly. Ireland is a great example of what a strong relationship between its economy and the US economy can do. Look at all the direct foreign investment here, US investment in Ireland.

“There is a friendship value to begin this while the Irish have the presidency because of our extraordinary relationship and our extraordinary economic relationships.”

Speaking in Dublin on Thursday, EU trade commissioner Karel de Gucht called the potential deal “the cheapest stimulus package you can imagine”, saying it could result in a 1% increase of European GDP, “meaning hundreds of thousands of jobs”.

The deal could include the total removal of tariffs charged by customs agencies on goods moving between the continents. It could also abolish legal and regulatory differences which require, for example, the German carmaker Audi to build different versions of its vehicles for the US and European markets, and require pharmaceutical companies to get approval for new drugs on both continents.

Agricultural interests will form the biggest barrier to an agreement. The EU is far stricter than the US on the use of genetically modified crops and the use of certain feeding products for livestock, and farmers will be concerned about the implications it will have for beef imports from America.

On farming and cultural grounds, France is the least enthusiastic of all EU countries about any agreement. In January, sources close to Hollande told the Irish Examiner that the administration expects opening up these talks would be “a priority of the Irish presidency”.

He added that it “may be” in the interests of the US to start these talks while Ireland is at the helm. “The presidency has to be impartial, so not biased in any way,” said the official.

Mr Donohue said: “The US has always bent over backwards to be helpful to our friends. The French — their comments are intense because they have serious economic problems and have chosen a way to resolve them that hasn’t worked as well as they have hoped.”

In his recent meeting with the Taoiseach, Mr Donohue said Enda Kenny assured him he is committed to moving forward and “he encouraged me to press our Government to make sure we do it in June”.

He said Mr Kenny “is very accessible, he is in the United States quite often. I saw him over the holidays — he is quite a fellow.”