Menkes Regulatory Cooperation under TTIP [in:] E. Czarny, A. Kuźnar, J. Menkes (eds.), The Impact of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on International Cooperation, Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2017, pp. 55-63 (original) (raw)

One of the paradoxes of economic globalisation is that ever closer economic ties mean that any significant global agreement would fundamentally reshape the entire picture, which renders highly desired agreements difficult to reach. As a result, regionalisation of trade and investment agreements increases transaction costs business, hence the need for regulatory convergence. Although the easiest route of universal regulation does not appear available any soon, it does not mean that we are doomed to regulatory havoc. There are alternatives, including the trickle-up process under TTIP, whereby parties undertake to review and compare relevant domestic regulation and to cooperate towards development of new rules. Most of all, however, TTIP regulatory cooperation is about broader vision of economics and politics. By adopting the TTIP Chapter on regulatory cooperation the EU and the US hope to acquire an advantage of the market standard-setter, as both negotiating parties undertake to “promote international standards”.