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Rome - The European Union decided Thursday to publish confidential papers setting out its negotiating position for a controversial trade deal with the United States, giving in to widespread demands for greater transparency.
Proponents of the so-called Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) say it will significantly boost economic growth and jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.
But critics have complained that talks on the landmark trade pact are shrouded in secrecy, possibly because it will favour big business at the expense of ordinary consumers.
"The declassification of the negotiating mandate is an important step towards ensuring the transparency of negotiations with the US," said Italy's vice minister for economic development, Carlo Calenda.
"This can only strengthen arguments in support of the conclusion of the TTIP agreement, a pillar of the future economic recovery of EU countries," he added.
Italy, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, had pushed for the official release of the papers, even though they had already been widely leaked.
The 17-page document contains technical details on what the EU intends to achieve in the trade deal, in everything from public procurement to intellectual property rights.
The publication, decided by EU member states, came ahead of informal talks between the bloc's trade ministers and the chief US negotiator on TTIP, to be hosted in Rome by Calenda on October 14.
"It allows everyone to see precisely how the EU wants this deal to work," the bloc's negotiator, Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said, adding that it is committed to "maintain [a] high level of protection for the environment, health, safety, consumers, data privacy."
The two sides have held seven negotiating rounds on the mammoth trade deal over the past year. The hope is that the talks can wrap up in early 2016, before the US presidential election later that year.
Speaking to foreign media on Wednesday, Calenda said negotiations were currently "paralyzed," but said there was hope for a "fresh start" following US mid-term elections and the appointment of a new EU trade commissioner next month.
However, he warned that a "plan B" was needed if no progress is achieved by next spring, pointing to the danger of the presidential election campaign distracting US political attention.
Calenda said the EU and the US should consider signing "an interim agreement" on less controversial issues, such as lowering tariffs and harmonizing standards for the auto industry, leaving thornier topics, such as food standards, for a later deal.
